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PH ranks 2nd in Asia-Pacific in deaths due to household pollution

Pollution caused by traditional cooking fuel is killing people in the Philippines at higher rates than those in most other countries in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).The Philippines has earned the distinction of having the region’s second biggest number of deaths due to indoor air pollution, WHO said in a recent report.Data gathered by the world health agency showed that close to 84 deaths per 100,000 Filipinos were recorded in 2016 due to indoor or household air pollution.This put the Philippines second only to Laos, where at least 85 deaths per 100,000 population were recorded.The Philippines also ranked third in the number of deaths at 45.3 per 100,000 due to outdoor air pollution. China recorded 81.5 deaths, and Mongolia, 48.8.“Air pollution is the most lethal environmental health threat in our region, and it affects people in middle-income countries at a much higher rate than those in high-income countries,” WHO regional director for Western Pacific, Dr. Shin Young-soo, said in a statement on Wednesday.Use of kerosene, woodThe number of deaths related to indoor air pollution in the Philippines may be due to the use of kerosene and wood in stoves, open fires and lamps.WHO noted that women and children were “most at risk” of household air pollution, as more than 40 percent of the world’s population had no access to clean cooking fuels and technologies in their homes.Outdoor air pollution is mainly caused by the “inefficient energy use in households, industry, the agriculture and transport sectors, and coal-fired power plants.”WHO said air quality could also be influenced by geographical, meteorological and seasonal factors.Dangerously highAir pollution levels in many parts of Asia “remain dangerously high,” the agency said.Its new estimates also show that nine out of every 10 people worldwide breathe air “containing high levels of pollutants.”Of the 7 million premature deaths due to air pollution, a third, or 2.2 million, were from the Western Pacific region, which includes the Philippines, WHO said.Heart disease, strokeMore than half of the 2.2 million deaths related to air pollution were due to heart disease or stroke.Other leading ailments are chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and pneumonia.Despite the latest data, WHO said the Western Pacific region had shown some “progress” in the last few years as measures were being taken to reduce air pollution from particulate matter. As a result, deaths went down by 600,000 from 2.8 million in 2012.“Many of the world’s megacities exceed WHO guideline levels for air quality by more than five times, representing a major risk to people’s health,” said Dr. Maria Neira, WHO director of public health, environmental and social determinants of health.Good newsNeira added that the “good news is that we are seeing more and more governments increasing commitments to monitor and reduce air pollution as well as more global action from the health sector and other sectors like transport, housing and energy.”WHO is expected to hold later this year the first Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health, which aims to bring together governments and partners in an effort to improve air quality and combat climate change.

['Philippine Daily Inquirer']

2017-04-28 20:12:54+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/987262/ph-ranks-2nd-in-asia-pacific-in-deaths-due-to-household-pollution

Inquirer

Aguirre, PCSO chief deny plotting to kill ‘Atong’ Ang

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre 2nd and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Chairman Jose Jorge Copuz on Friday separately denied having any knowledge on a supposed threat on the life of gambling operator Charlie “Atong” Ang.Corpuz described as baseless claims made by Ang on the supposed plan to have him killed because he is a competition of the Small Town Lottery (STL) run by the PCSO.“I categorically deny all the accusations of Atong Ang for being complete fabrications,” Aguirre said.Corpus said he had expected such allegations to be thrown at the PCSO because of its commitment to expand the STL and eliminate illegal numbers games in the country.He added that the PCSO would stay focused on its objective to generate more revenues through the expansion of STL to ensure that more funds will be available for the various health projects and programs of the government.Corpus said it is very unlikely that Aguirre, as well as National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., would be behind the supposed slay plot to eliminate Ang, who is reportedly the operator of the Meridien Vista Gaming Corp. (MVGC).The MVGC is reportedly involved in illegal numbers games operation using its jai-alai game as front.Corpuz said selection of STL authorized agent corporations or AACs involves a stringent process to make sure that only those qualified would be allowed to operate the STL.He made the clarification to belie Ang’s claim that STL operations are being controlled by certain personality.“That is impossible since monitoring and control are in place within the PCSO for the STL,” Corpus said.The PCSO assured the public that all its games are conducted in a transparent and professional manner wherein the integrity and truthfulness of every game can be expected.The charity office said it is in full control of all its gaming operations, including the STL to generate Serbisyo, Trabaho at Laro for Filipinos nationwide.PCSO General Manager Alexander Balutan earlier said the agency is evaluating the application of 35 new agent corporations that want to operate under the expanded STL in various areas in the country.Balutan said the approval of 35 new AACs is expected to further boost the state-run charitable institution’s revenue collection to be used in providing medical assistance to poor Filipinos.Ang on Thursday told reporters that he wants protection from President Rodrigo Duterte because his life is in danger.He accused Aguirre, Esperon and members of Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1982 of wanting to liquidate him to weaken virtual jai alai operations operated by MVGC of which he is general manager in Northern Luzon.Ang was a convicted criminal, having been sentenced by the Sandiganbayan in connection with a plunder case against then-President Joseph Estrada.He entered into a plea bargaining agreement for a lesser offense and was charged only with corruption of public officials.Ang said he made the announcement on the death threats against him in public so the people would know should anything happen to him.The known gambling operator threatened that he will divulge more names in a legislative inquiry, including that of a congressman who allegedly serves as Aguirre’s “bagman.”He said Aguirre was taking part in STL operations through his brother, Ogie Aguirre.National Bureau of Investigation agents want to “neutralize” him, as supposedly revealed to him by several of the bureau’s agents.Esperon and members of PMA Class of 1982, Ang claimed, are protectors of the STL in Northern Luzon and are demanding cuts from the operations.“I am ready to face any kind of investigation that might be conducted, be it legislative, criminal or administrative. I am not afraid as I have nothing to hide. My conscience is clear,” Aguirre said.

['Jomar Canlas']

2017-04-28 20:12:54+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/aguirre-pcso-chief-deny-plotting-kill-atong-ang-2/324556/

Manila Times

Duterte says charges vs ex-President will fail

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday night described as “silly” the charges against former President Benigno Aquino III recommended by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales over the 2015 Mamasapano massacre.“The charges are there to ensure failure,” the President told reporters.He described the charge of usurpation of authority at one point as bugok and all wrong.The President is the Commander in Chief and could “call anyone to fight criminal operations,” Mr. Duterte pointed out.“He was just asking for the advice from a professional police,” Mr. Duterte said, referring to former Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima. “I do not see anything wrong there.”Mr. Duterte said the charges against Mr. Aquino “will fail.”He said the Mamasapano raid was “not a misadventure” but a case of Murphy’s Law, which says that anything that can go wrong will go wrong.He pointed out that while it was a success because the commandos killed the Malaysian terrorist, they lost 44 men.Asked who was at fault, he said: “Fate.”

['Christine O. Avendaño']

2017-08-12 19:54:48+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/914727/duterte-says-charges-vs-ex-president-will-fail

Inquirer

Group warns BFAR on law enforcement fund

THE militant fisher folk group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Saturday called for the scrapping of the 2018 budget of Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) allocated for the Fisheries Regulatory and Law Enforcement Program worth P697.7 million.The amount forms part of the bureau’s P5.9-billion proposed budget in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2018.The group said the law enforcement program will expand BFAR’s arming of small fishermen assigned as bantay dagat or sea patrol whose task is to go after other fishermen who will be charged for illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, or violating the amended Fisheries Code.The group claimed the campaign against illegal fishing results in vigilantism and abuse of authority.Pamalakaya recalled the harassment by deputized sea patrol personnel in Barangay Papaya, Nasugbu, Batangas last July 17 where they beat and forced five fishermen to jump off the water, resulting in a one fisherman dying. Four other fishermen were reportedly wounded.“Arming the fishermen and tasking them to become sea enforcers are alarming and disturbing. Instead of fishing nets, doing the usual fishing activities, fisher folk who are assigned as sea patrols are loaded with arms, aiming toward other fishermen only to comply with BFAR’s mandate of curbing illegal fishing activities,” Fernando Hicap, the group’s chairman, said in a statement.Pamalakaya instead called for the rechanneling of the budget to calamity and disaster resiliency so the bureau can quickly provide economic aid and rehabilitation to fisher folk affected by future natural disasters like typhoons, earthquakes, storm surges and other ecosystem disturbances such as red tide, fish kills, among others.

['Neil Alcober']

2017-08-12 19:54:48+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/group-warns-bfar-law-enforcement-fund/344010/

Manila Times

Solon asks Duterte for jet ski to Panatag

Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano is willing to lead the charge of Philippine troops against China but only if President Duterte will lend him his Jet Ski to ride to battle.Mr. Duterte, in a speech to the Filipino community in Burma (Myanmar) on Sunday, mocked Alejano, who filed the first impeachment complaint against him in the House of Representatives last week, to lead the charge in a war with China over ownership of Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.Alejano had said he would file a supplemental complaint against Mr. Duterte for violating the Constitution by refusing to confront China over its plan to build on Panatag Shoal and its incursions into Benham Rise off the eastern coast of Luzon.“[If] he (Alejano) wants to fight in China, he could lead [the charge]. I would be glad to send him [with] the first batch of Filipinos who want to take the Spratlys and all of [the islands occupied by China]. Go ahead. He can go first,” Mr. Duterte said.Responding on Tuesday, Alejano, a former Marine captain, said, “Can I borrow his Jet Ski? Because it’s already rusting from nonuse.”Alejano was referring to Mr. Duterte’s campaign promise to lay down his life for retention of Philippine territory in the Spratlys.“We have submitted ourselves to arbitration … and China has insisted on sovereignty and won’t submit to [the arbitral court’s] jurisdiction. If we win the case but China won’t obey [the tribunal’s ruling], I will not go to war,” Mr. Duterte said at a presidential debate at University of Pangasinan in Dagupan City on April 24 last year.“If they don’t want to obey, then I will ask the Philippine Navy to bring me to the nearest boundary, I will get off, take a Jet Ski, carry a Philippine flag to the nearest airport [on a Chinese-occupied island], plant that flag and I’ll say, ‘This is ours. Do what you want with me,’” he said.“I will stake that claim. I have long had the ambition to be a hero. When I go there, you cry here,” he added, drawing cheers from the audience.‘Hyperbole’After winning the election, however, Mr. Duterte said his remarks were just “hyperbole.”On Sunday, before leaving for Burma, Mr. Duterte told a news conference at Davao International Airport in Davao City that he could not stop China from building a planned environmental monitoring station on Panatag Shoal, which Beijing seized from the Philippines in 2012.“What do you want me to do, declare war against China? I can’t. We will lose all our military and policemen tomorrow and we [will be] a destroyed nation,” he said.Alejano said Mr. Duterte’s stance was “defeatist,” exactly how China wanted the Philippines “to feel.”

['Dj Yap']

30/06/2016 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/882744/solon-asks-duterte-for-jet-ski-to-panatag

Inquirer

‘An initial victory for youth today, future generations’

Lawmakers on Friday lauded President Duterte’s decision to sign a law granting tuition-free education in state universities and colleges despite opposition from his economic managers.The bill would have lapsed into law on Saturday had Mr. Duterte not sign it on Thursday.“The passage of the free tuition law is an initial victory not only for the youth today but also for future generations,” Kabataan Rep. Sarah Elago said.“We have to [remain] vigilant, however, on possible limits that may be inserted in the new law’s [implementation rules],” she said.ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio said: “We hail the signing into law by President Duterte of the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act. This is a historic victory in our fight for the people’s right to education.”Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano, a critic of Mr. Duterte and one of the principal authors of the free tuition law, said: “These are the kinds of policies we need to focus on instead of unabated killings.”Positive stepSocial Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo thanked Mr. Duterte for “heeding the appeals” of “thousands” of students and parents by signing the free tuition bill into law.“This is a very positive step forward in our collective efforts as a people to democratize access to education and help ease the financial burdens of so many Filipinos who want to improve the quality of their lives and their chances at a better future by gaining college degrees,” Taguiwalo said in a statement.“We deeply recognize the value of education and with the passage of this law, we hope more Filipinos will become empowered to build better futures for themselves, their families and this country,” she said.Mark Vincent Lim, spokesperson for the National Union of Students of the Philippines, said that while his group welcomed the enactment of the measure, it remained opposed to some of its provisions, including the preferential guarantee for private universities and colleges.“This is guaranteed profit to private universities as a way to appease private interests, a student loan program was included in the bill to somewhat cover for their losses brought about by decreased enrollment,” Lim said in a statement.He warned that the economic managers may still be able to “reverse this victory by issuing flawed [implementation rules].”To prevent that, he urged immediate implementation of the policy banning collection of tuition and other school fees.

['Dj Yap', 'Jaymee T. Gamil', 'Jovic Yee']

26/06/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/920500/philippine-news-updates-tuition-free-education-president-duterte-kabataan-rep-sarah-elago

Inquirer

Casinos must soon report transactions of any amount

A bill mandating casinos to report all suspicious transactions to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) regardless of the amount involved has been proposed in the House of Representatives.Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. made the pitch under his House Bill 14 or the Casino Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism Act, which will require casinos (including Internet-based casinos and ship-based) regulated and supervised by Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority or any other appropriate supervising authority to report suspicious and covered transactions to the AMLC.Money laundering is defined as “a crime whereby the proceeds of an unlawful activity are transacted, thereby making them appear to have originated from legitimate sources.”Belmonte’s bill states that regardless of the amount involved, a suspicious transaction exists when a casino operator or any of its employees knows, suspects, has reason to suspect, or should have known by due diligence that the transaction: a) involves funds from an unlawful activity or money laundering offense; b) is designed to evade any of the requirements under the Anti-Money Laundering Law; c) has no business or apparent lawful purpose or is not sort in which the particular customer would normally be expected to engage and the casino operator or any of its employees knows of no reasonable explanation for the transaction after examining facts and background of possible purpose of transaction; and d) involves the use of casinos to facilitate unlawful activity money laundering and terrorist financing.Covered transaction, on the other hand, is defined as a single transaction undertaken by any individual per day with the casino exceeding P4 million.A covered and suspicious transaction will be considered a suspicious transaction, while covered transactions do not include check-out transactions to the extent the currency is won in a money play and is the same currency the customer wagered in the money play; and check-in transaction to the extent the currency is the same currency the customer previously wagered in a money play on the same table game without leaving the table and as well as jackpot winnings from slot machines.“The significance of including the casino sector under the coverage of the Anti-Money Laundering Law was underscored by the Bangladesh Bank heist. The funds entered the Philippine banking system and made their way to local casinos and junket operators, where the money was reportedly laundered and transferred overseas,” Belmonte said in his Explanatory Note.The former Speaker was referring to the $81-million worth of dirty money wired to RCBC Branch on Jupiter Street in Makati City (Metro Manila) last March.The amount was stolen from the Bangladesh Bank account deposited in the Federal Reserve of New York.“Attempts to trace and recover the money encountered several setbacks, as casinos are excluded from the coverage of the country’s present AMLA laws. This bill will address this deficiency by putting the necessary amendments to discourage the use of the casinos as avenues of illicit activity,” Belmonte said.House Bill 14 also grants the AMLC the power to conduct on-site inspection of casino records and documents, as well as examine any particular account and related accounts with any casino operator that is deemed related to any unlawful activity or money laundering or financing of terrorism offense.Related accounts refers to accounts, the funds and sources of which originated from and/or materially linked to the accounts subject of a freeze order(s) issued by a competent authority or subject of an inquiry.“This will help ensure the integrity of financial and banking institutions in the country, and is a crucial step in making the Philippines compliant with international standards,” Belmonte said.His bill, however, sets limits to disclosure by providing that casino operators and its employees cannot be compelled by any body or any court to disclose a Suspicious Transaction Report, disclose the fact that an STR was filed or is about to be filed and disclose any information on the STR without prejudice to government authorities’ power to regulate.In addition, reports of covered and suspicious transactions to the AMLC, casino operators and their officers and employees are confidential and cannot be released to any person, including members of the media.Otherwise, the one who will be found violating the confidentiality rule will be held criminally liable.

['Llanesca T. Panti']

2016-11-01 20:44:31+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/casinos-must-soon-report-transactions-amount/294228/

Manila Times

Suicide bomber kills religious official in Afghan city

A suicide bomber in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad killed a senior religious official and his bodyguard on Wednesday and wounded at least 11 people, officials said.The suicide bomber approached Abdul Zaher Haqqani, head of the Nangarhar provincial director of religious affairs and the Haj pilgrimage, and detonated his explosive vest, Ataullah Khogyani, the provincial governor’s spokesman, said.“He was coming off a bridge when the attacker approached him and blew himself up close to his car,” Khogyani added.There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Nangarhar, on the border with Pakistan, is a volatile province which has become one of the main bases for Islamic State militants who fight both the government and the Taliban.

[]

07/03/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/03/07/suicide-bomber-kills-religious-official-in-afghan-city/

Manila Bulletin

3 more govs in Bicol for Poe–Salceda

Sen. Grace Poe can count on the support of four of six governors in the Bicol region, Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said on Sunday.Salceda, in a text message to the Inquirer, declared that “all Bicol mainland governors are now for Grace Poe,” referring to Governors Edgardo Tallado of Camarines Norte, Miguel Luis Villafuerte of Camarines Sur, Raul Lee of Sorsogon and himself.Salceda said he was still trying to negotiate with Masbate Gov. Vicente Homer Revil to support Poe.The governors would meet today in Daet, Camarines Norte, to finalize their commitment of support, he said.Catanduanes Vice Gov. Jose Teves Jr., who is running for governor, has also committed to support Poe, Salceda said.On Friday, Salceda bolted the ruling Liberal Party (LP) and announced that he would back Poe’s candidacy.Early this month, Brian Llamanzares, Poe’s son, campaigned for his mother in Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte.In his visit to Camarines Norte, Llamanzares met the candidates of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) led by Tallado, including all candidates for mayor in the 12 towns of the province.In Camarines Sur, Llamanzares met with Migz Villafuerte and his father, former Gov. Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte and business leaders in the province. The Villafuertes are members of the Nacionalista Party (NP).The younger Villafuerte, who is running for reelection, said a Poe administration would enhance the delivery of basic services to Filipinos.Andaya’s turnaroundLlamanzares also campaigned in the first district of Camarines Sur where Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr., an NPC member, endorsed Poe in a gathering in Sipocot town.But the latest word in Camarines Sur indicates that Andaya and his mayoral candidates in the first and second districts had shifted their support to Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and his running mate, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, according to Inquirer sources.In his statement of support for Poe on Friday, Salceda said it was his duty to join “ang gobyernong may puso” (government with a heart), referring to Poe’s campaign slogan.He said he was doing this “for the good of Albay, for the good of all Albayanos and for the future of my country.”Authentic humanismSalceda said Poe “shares our values of authentic humanism, shares our goals of countryside development and national competitiveness and certainly her compassion will ensure that the impact will be shared by all.”In a joint statement, LP leaders in Albay said they were not worried about the recent turnaround of Salceda.Albay Rep. Fernando Gonzalez, in a telephone interview, said the administration party was behind its standard-bearer, Mar Roxas.LP machineryHe said administration candidates could count on the LP machinery to deliver votes on May 9.The joint statement was signed by Gonzalez; former Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, who is running in place of his son, Rep. Grex Lagman; Mayors Noel Rosal of Legazpi City and Patricia Gonzalez-Alsua of Ligao City; and former Albay Rep. and former Tabaco City Mayor Krisel Lagman-Luistro.“[Salceda’s] decision is his own. The LP of the first district and third district, including the cities of Legazpi, Ligao and Tabaco, stand solidly behind Mar Roxas who will have an overwhelming support in Albay,” they said.TurncoatRep. Grex Lagman, in a text message, said: “Salceda is a political turncoat. What else is new? He did a 180-degree turnaround in [the] 2010 [elections] when he junked [his] party mate, Gibo Teodoro (Gilberto Teodoro Jr.) for P-Noy (President Aquino).”He described Salceda as a “recidivist,” noting that “most party mates in the LP were not surprised [about his decision to leave].”“We can do better without Salceda,” he said.

['Juan Escandor Jr.', 'Mar S. Arguelles']

30/01/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/781469/3-more-govs-in-bicol-for-poe-salceda

Inquirer

Duterte appeals to Marawi residents to help keep terrorists from entering their city

President Duterte has vowed adequate funds to rebuild a better Marawi City but appealed to residents to help prevent terrorism from infiltrating their community again.In his return visit to Marawi City on Tuesday, the President warned of “massive destruction” and “loss of lives” if terrorists launch another siege of the city.“I beg of you not to allow them to enter because it will just cause massive destruction and the loss of lives including the innocent ones who are really helpless in case of war,” Duterte said during the initial turnover of temporary houses for families displaced by the five-month terror siege.“Let us try to avoid terrorism. It is not the correct way to obey Islam. You do not kill and destroy for no reason,” he said.Duterte admitted he considered what had happened to Marawi City a “nightmare” when it was attacked by terrorists several months ago.The President flew back to Marawi to lead the groundbreaking rites of a new military camp and inspect the Bahay Pag-asa shelter project for displaced families. He also led the distribution of certificates of acceptance and occupancy of transitory shelter units at Barangay Sagonsongan.It was the President’s eighth visit to Marawi since the conflict started last May 2017. The city, left in ruins, was liberated from the clutches of terrorists last October.In the same speech, the President assured the governments’ steadfast support for the Marawi community to recover the conflict.“I will guarantee you that in the remaining years, there will always be money for you that will be able to rehabilitate your businesses,” he said. “I am always here to help you,” he added.Once the rebuilding is complete, Duterte encouraged the Marawi residents to “invite everybody” including Christians to visit their place.“Pag gumanda na ito, invite everybody, invite the Christians because they want to see Lake Lanao. Just provide them security. Puro tayo Pilipino (Once the place is beautified, invite everybody, invite the Christians because want to see Lake Lanao. Just provide them security We are all Filipinos),” he said.He added that they should “redirect” their mindset and allow progress to flourish in the city. “You will need the Christians as the Christians need the Muslim population.. so we can improve the lives better than what our parents gave us,” he said.He said it was better to live in harmony than in conflict despite having different religions, adding they should emulate Zamboanga or Malaysia. “Bakit tayo dito nagpapatayan? [Why are we killing each other here?] he asked.Before ending his speech, the President lauded anew the bravery of the government troops that fought the terrorists during the five-month siege.

[]

30/01/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/01/30/duterte-appeals-to-marawi-residents-to-help-keep-terrorists-from-entering-their-city/

Manila Bulletin

Int’l finance group upbeat on Poe, Roxas but cool to Binay

The Washington-based Institute of International Finance (IIF) said Sen. Grace Poe or Interior Secretary Mar Roxas becoming President in 2016 would be good for the Philippine economy, while a Binay presidency may undermine the reforms introduced by the Aquino administration.Amid uncertainties due to next year’s national elections as well as stock market and debt troubles in China and Greece, respectively, IIF lowered its 2015 economic growth forecast for the Philippines to 6.1 percent from 6.3 percent, according to its latest Global Economic Monitor issued on July 15.IIF, which claims to be “the leading global association of financial institutions, with close to 500 members from more than 70 different countries,” also brought down to 6.3 percent from 6.5 percent its 2016 growth projection for the Philippines.In a separate report released last month titled “IIF Dispatch: Philippines Update,” it said “[n]ext year’s elections could prove challenging” to the country’s economic transformation in recent years.“The upcoming presidential election will likely provide a short-term economic boost through government spending and investment, but maintaining policy continuity will be a challenge,” IIF said.“The typical pre-election infrastructure investment surge would favor Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas (President Aquino’s running mate in 2010), but it seems likely that investors will stay on the sideline and wait to see how the new administration shapes up,” it added.“Sen. Grace Poe, an independent with ties to Mr. Aquino’s Team PNoy, has also recently emerged as a potential contender.”However, “[i]f the more populist Vice President Jejomar Binay wins, he could undermine the government’s PPP strategy if/when he takes office,” IIF said, referring to the Aquino administration’s centerpiece public-private partnership program.As of June, the institute noted that Binay had been leading the surveys, with Poe “not far behind,” while Roxas trailed both.“While a victory for Poe or Roxas would favor continuation of the current administration’s agenda and would be market positive, it is too early to tell how the market would react if Binay wins,” IIF said.It sees next year’s elections boosting government spending—which is currently underperforming and dragging the economy—as early as the latter part of this year.“[W]e believe that funds already available at the agency level will make their way into the real economy in the second half of 2015, especially given that the government has a strong incentive to make things happen before the May 2016 elections,” IIF said.On its website, IIF said its members “include banks, insurance companies, asset managers, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, central banks and development banks.”It said its mission was “to support our members in prudently managing risks and to advocate for regulatory, financial and economic policies that are in the broad interest of our members and that foster global financial stability and sustainable economic growth.”RELATED STORIESBiz Buzz: Bizmen’s ‘backup’Marketing Aquino’s successor

['Ben O. De Vera']

2018-06-30 00:04:34+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706493/intl-finance-group-upbeat-on-poe-roxas-but-cool-to-binay

Inquirer

Total wealth of Aquino Cabinet rises by P121M

Call it Multimillionaires’ Club.The combined wealth of members of President Aquino’s official family increased by more than P121 million last year, based on their statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).The Aquino Cabinet’s wealth grew from P2.85 billion in 2013 to P2.97 billion the following year, thanks partly to the 9.59-percent increase in Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario’s net worth.Del Rosario remained the wealthiest Cabinet member with a P838,809,918.82 net worth last year, up by more than P73 million from the previous year.The President himself declared a net worth of P68.3 million in 2014.Education Secretary Armin Luistro, a member of the De La Salle Brothers, was the lone nonmillionaire among 36 members of the Cabinet. He declared a net worth of only P471,064.46.Luistro, whose community is described as “full-time religious educators,” listed no real properties or “business interests and financial connections.” His net worth was based solely on money he kept in two bank accounts.Next to him as the “poorest” member of the Cabinet was Presidential Peace Adviser Teresita Deles, who declared a net worth of P4,101,856.77. Deles was among six officials who declared a net worth of less than P10 million.The others were Secretary Manuel Mamba (P8.9 million), Political Adviser Ronald Llamas (P6.39 million), Justice Secretary Leila de Lima (P4.88 million), Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz (P4.86 million) and Social Secretary Corazon Soliman (P4.54 million).Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima placed second among the top Cabinet millionaires last year, dislodging Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez whose 2014 net worth was P283,425,800. Purisima declared a net worth of P298,940,320, which represented a P19.9-million increase from 2013.Still at No. 4 was Interior Secretary Mar Roxas even if his net worth dropped by P8.9 million from 2013 to 2014. He is now worth P202,080,452.71, down from P211,027,479.88. Roxas declared P81.88 million in total liabilities.Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo kept the fifth spot with a net worth of P148,636,967, which was around P2 million less than the one he declared in 2013.Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras moved a notch higher from No. 7 in 2013. His 2014 net worth was P134,247,040.17, up by P14.4 million from the previous year.Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla also improved with a net worth of P122,095,110, which was P5 million higher than 2013. He now sat at No. 7.Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Alfredo Benjamin Caguiao was down two places from No. 6 in 2013. He is now at No. 8 with a P117,175,000 net worth.At No. 9 was Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya with P108,115,680.13, followed by former Health Secretary Enrique Ona with P93,692,345.56.Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala remained at 11th place with a net worth of P91,170,935.37.RELATED STORIESWho are the richest, poorest Cabinet members?Richest, poorest Cabinet members bared

['Christian V. Esguerra']

2018-06-30 00:04:34+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/694211/total-wealth-of-aquino-cabinet-rises-by-p121m

Inquirer

Hospitals blame PhilHealth anew

PRIVATE hospitals blamed the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) anew for their financial problems,citing the state firm’s inability to pay the insurance claims of healthcare providers on time.In a letter President Rodrigo Duterte, Rustico Jimenez, Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, Inc.(Phapi) president, said affected hospitals were close to declaring bankruptcy, in debt or unable to sustain their operating expenses because PhilHealth has been late in paying the hospitals’ insurance claims.This was in spite of their continuing dialogue with PhilHealth and two Senate hearings on May 22 and 28, Jimenez said.“If the situation is not immediately addressed, private hospitals will be compelled to either stand down in their operation resulting to mass layouts, or bill the patients out of their pocket,” he added.Jimenez claimed that many patients entitled to PhilHealth benefits remained unattended because of this “anomalous” situation, which “defeats the purpose of universal healthcare coverage.”

['Catherine A. Modesto']

2018-06-30 00:04:34+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/hospitals-blame-philhealth-anew/414153/

Manila Times

LP joining House ruling coalition

THE LIBERAL Party (LP) will join the “Coalition for Change” led by Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) to support incoming President Rodrigo Duterte’s legislative agenda in the 17th Congress.Speaking in a radio interview on Sunday, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said President Aquino, the LP chair, had given the party the go-signal to support Duterte and his handpicked Speaker, incoming Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez of Davao del Norte province.Belmonte said most of the 115 House members who won the May 9 election as LP candidates expected to shift to the PDP-Laban coalition, but Caloocan Rep. Edgar Erice, LP political affairs chief, said neither the party nor the President had signed off on the plan for the LP to support Duterte.“There is no party decision as far as I my knowledge is concerned that mandates party members from not joining the minority or vice versa,” Erice said on Sunday.“The party as a whole wants to be part of the majority. And we are negotiating it,” Belmonte said.He said the majority of LP members joining the ruling coalition would carry the mantle of the party while the handful who would stay with the minority “need not retain the name LP or be associated with the majority LP.”The decision to join the majority was meant to comply with Duterte’s directive that all LP members joining the majority must join PDP-Laban if Belmonte and the LP would be the minority bloc.To firm things upBelmonte said he had not signed the declaration of support for PDP-Laban and Alvarez because he was planning to call a meeting to firm things up after the proclamation of Duterte.“A week ago, we both agreed what to do, which means to say that he (Alvarez) will accept the LP as a party within the coalition,” the Speaker said, pointing out that the LP coalition in the 15th and 16th Congress did not require members of the Nationalist People’s Coalition or United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) to switch to the ruling party.Belmonte said the President, who served three terms in the House, had taken a “realistic attitude” toward the LP’s decision to cooperate with Duterte’s party in the 17th Congress.“He prefers that the LP go with the majority and vote, support President Duterte and Congressman Alvarez. He prefers that [the LP] move as a group,” Belmonte said.“But he knows that will not happen. He is realistic to know all of that because he went through this before,” Belmonte said, noting that the LP split up into two factions—one with Senate President Franklin Drilon and the other with Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza—during the Arroyo administration.Equitable shareErice, however, claimed that in the LP meeting with the President in Malacañang last week, the party agreed to ally itself with PDP-Laban if some members would be named committee chairs.He said that without an equitable share, Belmonte would run for Speaker and, with Alvarez’s superior numbers, possibly end up as the minority leader.“The LP will respect individual members who would want to join the minority, but they will have to inform the leadership,” Erice said.He said he would stay in the minority as an LP member “to provide a different view of things.”Belmonte said LP members who campaigned for losing presidential candidate Mar Roxas would not look bad in the majority because this was a tradition in the House.He cited as an example the allies of the late Speaker Ramon Mitra Jr. who abandoned Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP) less than a week after Mitra lost the 1992 presidential election to Fidel V. Ramos.“I first became a congressman in 1992, and I see this (turncoatism) every year. I hope we can change the system. But under our current Constitution, almost everybody can form a party. I guess it’s something that we have to expect,” Belmonte said.He said he felt betrayed that some of his closest allies had abandoned the LP and switched to PDP-Laban, but he had accepted it because it was the reality in Philippine politics.Self-interestBut overall, Belmonte said he did not feel bad that some LP members had decided to switch to the new ruling party because their motives were reasonable—some just wanted to ensure the continued flow of projects to their districts, and others wanted to advance their careers by getting better positions.With 290 House members fighting for the spoils, however, Belmonte said it was likely that some would not get any share and stay with the opposition.The LP is not the only party vying to lead the minority in the House, as UNA and the Lakas-Christian-Muslim Democrats have also signified their interest to serve as fiscalizers.With two months to go before the 17th Congress sits, Belmonte said a lot of things could still happen, including the usual horse trading between parties.

['Gil C. Cabacungan']

26/11/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/788096/lp-joining-house-ruling-coalition

Inquirer

Manila police file murder complaint vs 18 in fatal hazing

The Manila police on Monday accused John Paul Solano and 17 others of murder, obstruction of justice, perjury, robbery and violation of the Anti-Hazing Law in a complaint filed in the Department of Justice (DOJ) over the fatal hazing of University of Santo Tomas (UST) law student Horacio Castillo III.The Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs opened an inquiry into Castillo’s death on Monday night. The hearing was still going on as of press time.Wearing a yellow prison shirt, Solano looked calm and was even smiling at times when he was brought by Manila Police District (MPD) officers to the DOJ for inquest proceedings presided over by Assistant State Prosecutor Susan Villanueva.Due processSolano, one of the primary suspects in the death of Castillo, surrendered to Sen. Panfilo Lacson on Friday after he was identified as the man who took Castillo’s badly bruised body to the hospital where the 22-year-old freshman law student was declared dead on arrival on Sept. 17.Lacson, head of the public order committee, turned Solano over to the MPD.Assisted by lawyer Paterno Esmaquel, Solano demanded his immediate release from police custody, insisting he was innocent and invoking his right to due process.Besides Solano, also named respondents were Ralph Trangia, Arvin Balag, Mhin Wei Chan, Ranie Rafael Santiago, Oliver John Audrey Onofre, Jason Adolfo Robiños, Danielle Hans Matthew Rodrigo, Karl Matthew Villanueva, Joshua Joriel Macabali, Axel Munro Hipe, Marc Anthony Ventura, Aeron Salientes, Marcelino Bagtang, Zimon Padro and Jose Miguel Salamat.Most of them are members of the Aegis Juris fraternity at UST, which Castillo had sought to join, leading to his fatal initiation.Also charged with the same offense was Trangia’s father, Antonio.A complaint for obstruction of justice was brought against his mother, Rosemarie.Antonio was the registered owner of the vehicle that was used to bring Castillo’s body to the hospital while Rosemarie accompanied her son in fleeing the country after news of Castillo’s death spread in the media.Wrongfully charged?Speaking with reporters after the proceedings, Esmaquel said Solano should be freed at once because he was wrongfully charged by the MPD with murder in relation to Republic Act No. 8049, or the Anti-Hazing Law, which is regarded as a special law.“It is a settled truth and it is with authority … (that) there is no such offense as complex crime of (murder and violation of the antihazing law). Then it follows that he should be released immediately,” Esmaquel said.“He voluntarily surrendered since he was not a subject of a warrantless arrest. My client is now being illegally detained,” he said.In an eight-page omnibus motion, Solano maintained that “there can be no complex crime if one offense is punished by a special law since both offenses must be defined and punished by the same statute.”“In other words, in the absence of the proper offense charged in the instant case, the herein respondent has no offense to refute and disprove,” he said.Solano also questioned why he underwent inquest proceedings and not a regular preliminary investigation like the other respondents in the case.Esmaquel also noted that his client was made to sign a judicial affidavit without the assistance of a lawyer.But Chief Supt. Joel Coronel, MPD head, said Solano misled police investigators after he initially claimed that he only found Castillo on the road.Speaking to reporters, Supt. Erwin Margarejo, spokesperson for the MPD, said Solano was not permanently detained, but was only placed under temporary custody.“There is no illegal detention. It’s not a detention cell. It’s a custodial facility,” he said, referring to the MPD homicide section.Margarejo deflected several questions about the case, invoking the sub judice limits to discussions of cases pending in courts.He said it was up to the court to determine whether Solano had been unlawfully arrested, as well as evaluate the degree of participation of the other suspects.Fraternity member, tooSolano is facing perjury charges for lying in a sworn statement given to the police last week.He claimed that he found Castillo’s body on a sidewalk in Tondo, Manila, on Sept. 17 after buying cigarettes from a store in the area.But video footage from the barangay security camera showed nothing unusual happened in the area on that day.Police investigators also found that Solano was also a law student at UST and a member of Aegis Juris, although he claimed he did not participate in the hazing of Castillo.

['Marlon Ramos', 'Matthew Reysio-Cruz']

26/11/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/933397/manila-police-file-murder-complaint-vs-18-in-fatal-hazing

Inquirer

Dozens of flights cancelled as Bali volcano continues to spew smoke

considered a phreatic eruption by volcanologists.Authorities have decided not to raise the alert back to the highest level yet.”This time, the tremors and quakes caused by the volcano’s activities are significantly less than in September,” said head of Indonesia’s volcanology centre Kasbani, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.Mount Agung is one of more than 120 active volcanoes extending the length of Indonesia, which straddles the Pacific Ring of Fire.

[]

26/11/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/11/26/dozens-of-flights-cancelled-as-bali-volcano-continues-to-spew-smoke/

Manila Bulletin

SC petition vs Sereno won’t affect impeachment proceedings – Umali

The chair of the House justice committee said on Monday that the quo warranto petition filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno would not affect the impeachment proceedings against her.Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali told reporters that Sereno’s appointment in 2012 was presumed valid until the Supreme Court declared it otherwise.A quo warranto petition questions the validity of an appointment from the start based on the official’s qualifications, while an impeachment case seeks the official’s ouster for culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust or other high crimes.Should the high court grant the OSG petition to invalidate Sereno’s appointment, the impeachment proceedings will be rendered “functus officio,” Umali said. (Functus officio refers to the expiration of the mandate of the proceedings.)Until that happens, he said, the quo warranto case and the impeachment proceedings in Congress “can proceed simultaneously.”Separate actions“These are separate and independent actions based on different grounds,” Umali said.The option to oust Sereno by challenging her legitimacy picked up steam after it was disclosed in the House justice committee’s investigation last month that she had not complied with the requirement to submit statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALNs) covering a 10-year period to the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) during the 2012 selection process.She submitted SALNs only for 2009, 2010 and 2011.Critics of the Duterte administration’s latest move against Sereno pointed out that the Constitution only requires the Chief Justice to be a natural-born Filipino citizen, who is at least 40 years old and has served as a judge or practiced law for at least 15 years.But Umali argued that the JBC rules requiring the submission of the SALNs “form part of the law of the land … as long as it’s not unconstitutional.”Thus, Sereno’s alleged failure to meet the requirement meant she did not qualify for the top Supreme Court post, he added.Umali’s stance on the quo warranto option was similar to that of Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, who suggested on Feb. 28 that the OSG study the option of seeking the invalidation of Sereno’s appointment.Party-list lawmakersSome party-list lawmakers, however, said only Congress, not the high court, could oust a sitting Chief Justice.Ako Bicol Rep. Rodel Batocabe raised fears that Sereno’s ouster by way of disqualification by the Supreme Court could “open the floodgates for quo warranto proceedings against impeachable officials.”This could “emasculate the power of Congress to impeach the officials who are expressly mandated by the Constitution to be impeachable,” Batocabe said.ACTS-OFW Rep. Aniceto Bertiz III said the evidence against Sereno in the impeachment proceedings was “already strong enough.”“Why do we need to disqualify her or question the validity of her appointment? We might as well just push through with the impeachment,” Bertiz said.Still, the three lawmakers said Sereno should make the “supreme sacrifice” of resigning to save the Supreme Court from further conflict.OppositionOpposition lawmakers derided the OSG’s move as a sign that the Duterte administration was not confident that the Senate, acting as the impeachment court, would convict Sereno and remove her from office.Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said the OSG petition exposed the administration’s lack of confidence that the impeachment case against Sereno could withstand Senate trial.The quo warranto petition is “another offensive against the Chief Justice and the system of checks and balances in the government,” said Rep. Sarah Jane Elago.According to Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, the OSG chose the high court as venue to oust Sereno because it “has become a hostile forum” against her, especially after the justices reportedly forced her to go on an indefinite leave.

['Vince F. Nonato']

17/05/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/973086/sc-petition-vs-sereno-wont-affect-impeachment-proceedings-umali

Inquirer

Ombudsman: Stay faithful to Charter

Everything remains to be seen as to how President-elect Rodrigo Duterte will run his administration, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales said on Sunday.Morales said she trusted that Duterte would “metamorphose” from the ruthless leader that he always sought to picture himself whenever he talked about the way he would deal with criminals to a President who would uphold the Constitution.Leading the celebration of the 118th anniversary of Philippine independence here, Morales said she believed in the reforms that Duterte had vowed to introduce once he assumed office.But to say that “change is coming” is an “understatement,” Morales said, “given the promises that [Duterte] has been saying through [the] media.”Duterte, known for talking tough and using gutter language even in front of the cameras, was elected on an anticrime platform that included a merciless fight against organized crime, especially drug trafficking.In her speech, Morales said the Philippines, “with a relatively young history of freedom,” had undergone “rebirths” brought about by war.Independence, she said, is not only defined by resistance to foreign aggression or self-rule.“Threats to our independence come, however, not only in the form of conflict involving our territory but also in indolence, apathy, immorality, intolerance and greed, all of which can be encapsulated in the common term ‘corruption,’” she said.“Corruption, without doubt, is a clear and present danger,” she added.Morales, who has indicted several officials involved in graft and corruption, said the Ombudsman remained the government’s “main artillery against corruption,” as enshrined in the Constitution.“Let us, at all time, remain faithful to our Constitution, to our independence as a nation, and to one another as Filipinos,” she said.But Morales, who earlier said her office would investigate the plunder complaint filed against Duterte, said she was not referring to anyone.She said she was “keeping faith” that the rule of law would prevail in the Philippines.“At this time, it is not opportune for me to say he (Duterte) is not doing the right thing. [Duterte’s pronouncements were] his prepresidential assumptions. He says he will metamorphose. Let’s see if he will still stick to what he is saying,” Morales said later in an interview.“Let’s see how he’s going to rule us, how he’s going to carry out the mandate that he has. Let him assume office first,” she said.

['Maricar Cinco']

17/05/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/790358/ombudsman-stay-faithful-to-charter

Inquirer

UN Palestinian refugee agency ‘part of the problem’: Swiss minister

PresseThe UN agency for Palestinian refugees is fuelling “unrealistic” hopes of return after 70 years of exodus and is therefore helping keep the Mideast conflict alive, Switzerland’s foreign minister said Thursday. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)was established after the war surrounding Israel’s creation in 1948, when around 700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled.But Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis pointed out that the number of Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza has swelled to more than five million.“It is unrealistic that this dream (of return) will be fulfilled for all,” he said in an interview given to several German-language papers owned by the Swiss NZZ group.“But UNRWA maintains this hope. For me, the question is whether UNRWA is part of the solution or part of the problem,” he said, concluding that “it is both”.The UN agency, he said, “worked as a solution for a long time, but today it has become part of the problem.”– Fuelling the conflict? –“It provides ammunition to continue the conflict. For as long as Palestinians live in refugee camps, they will want to return to their homeland,” he said.“By supporting UNRWA, we are keeping the conflict alive.”His comments came after a month and a half of mass protests and clashes along the Gaza border, calling for Palestinian refugees to be able to return to their homes now inside Israel.The largest demonstrations coincided with the move of the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on Monday, which saw Israeli forces kill some 60 Palestinians, pushing the overall toll well over 100.UNRWA is meanwhile struggling to cover a massive budget shortfall, after major donor Washington slashed its 2018 funding.The administration of US President Donald Trump has opted to cut the $360 million offered in 2017 to a commitment of just $60 million this year, leaving UNRWA scrambling to raise nearly half a billion dollars to guarantee services until the end of the year.Switzerland is among a group of countries who together pledged about $100 million in March to help fill the shortfall.Despite his scepticism of the role UNRWA is playing in the Middle East, Cassis warned the sudden funding cut facing the agency posed “a big risk”.“Millions of Palestinians could take to the streets,” he said, cautioning that lacking funds could cause the breakdown of a “machinery that provides stability”.“This is a risk that Switzerland cannot afford,” he said.Cassis said his country would continue funding UNRWA, but he also called for a heavier focus on integrating Palestinian refugees into their host communities.He said for instance that “instead of supporting UNRWA schools and hospitals, we could help the Jordanian institutions promote integration of Palestinian refugees.”

[]

17/05/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/05/17/un-palestinian-refugee-agency-part-of-the-problem-swiss-minister/

Manila Bulletin

Wanted: Lawmaker to sponsor bill on Bangsamoro Region

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has hit the Duterte administration for “noncompliance” with signed peace agreements with the rebel group, warning once again that failure to deal with legitimate grievances of the Bangsamoro people could fuel discontent and, ultimately, violence.In a statement on its official website, luwaran.com, the MILF on Saturday pointed out that no lawmaker has sponsored the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), the “legal interpretation” of the 2014 peace agreement between the government and the rebel group, two weeks after Malacañang transmitted the bill to Congress.Not priorityWorse for the MILF, the draft BBL was not listed among the Duterte administration’s priority measures during a meeting of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council on Tuesday.The MILF, however, said it remained hopeful that President Rodrigo Duterte would keep his campaign promise that he would make the proposed Bangsamoro autonomous region a “template for federalism in this country.”The envisioned autonomous region can only be established with the passage of the BBL, after it is ratified by the provinces concerned.The MILF said the “continued noncompliance of [the] government [with] signed agreements will put the MILF in a very tight and odd situation.”“Consequently, the MILF will be torn between two unholy situations: partnership with a government that does not fulfill commitments and fighting terrorist groups whose pathways and ideological lines are based on twisted interpretations of Islam.”“The right course of action for the MILF is: Hold the government accountable for its noncompliance [with] agreements and continue the assertion and, at the same time, continue to defend the MILF, as an organization, the people, and fight tooth and nail the spread of terrorism, anarchy and intrigues,” the MILF said.To fight terroristsThe group said it would continue to fight Islamic State-inspired groups. Recently, it reported that around 100 suspected Maute terrorists were sighted in Buldon, Maguindanao province.The MILF has been helping the government in rescuing residents trapped in Marawi since fighting between state forces and terrorists from the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups for control of the city erupted in late May.But the MILF reiterated its warning that “failure to address the legitimate grievances of the Moros of Mindanao, the conflict in Mindanao will stay with us.”“The use of brute force will only aggravate the problem. Of course, it will multiply the numbers of victims, but at the same time it will also increase the numbers of those resisting the government,” it said.“Given this as backdrop, the spillover of the Marawi crisis is the natural consequence of an illness not addressed properly. It is an unfortunate situation,” the MILF said.President Duterte has acknowledged the risk to peace posed by the delay in the passage of the proposed BBL.Speaking to reporters in Davao City late on Saturday after attending the birthday celebration of Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles, Mr. Duterte said conflict in Mindanao would continue unless the region was politically reconfigured in a way acceptable to all groups there.Nograles said it was wrong to say the passage of the proposed BBL was not a priority of the Duterte administration.He said the bill, along with other proposals not included in the first group of priority measures, would be put on the second list.

['Nikko Dizon']

09/03/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/927720/wanted-lawmaker-to-sponsor-bill-on-bangsamoro-region

Inquirer

Robredo turned over livelihood subsidies to abaca farmers in Lanao del Sur

Through Vice President Leni Robredo’s Angat Buhay Program, livelihood subsidies for abaca fiber processing were provided to at least 32 abaca farmers in Piagapo, Lanao del Sur.The team has given an abaca stripping machine, 66 sacks of organic fertilizer,44 sickles (knives) and two sprinklers in a turn over ceremony held at the ABC Hall, Municipal Complex, Barangay Bubo here recently.The abaca stripping machine was identified by the farmers as a priority need because they currently sell raw abaca fibers to an individual trader in the nearby town of Balo-i where it is processed.An average farmer will earn around fifty to sixty pesos per kilo which amounts approximately reached up to P217, 500 after one harvest season equivalent to eighteen months.With this development, providing this machine would allow them to sell the abaca fibers at eighty pesos a kilo which gave them earnings as much as P348, 000 per harvest season.“Having their own communal stripping machine would lessen travel and production costs, would allow the farmers to produce beter quality abaca fibers and earn more per kilo of abaca sold” said Robredo.“Sana maalagaan natin ang gamit na ibibigay at maging daan ito para mas lalong makagaan sa inyong dala-dala. Sana tuloy-tuloy na ang katahimikan na natatamasa natin ngayon para makabangon naman tayo”, she said.Mr. Mohammad “Malik” Datumanong, Chairman, Lusod Farmers Cooperative so with the abaca growers expressed gratitude for the help extended to them by the second highest leader in the country. “Napakarami pong salamat sa kanyang mga kasamahan at sa tulong na ibinigay, iyan po ay makakatulong sa amin at iyan ay alagaan po namin ng mabuti.Meanwhile, Malik was the pioneer abaca farmer in Piagapo which started back in 2012. He has been multi-cropping abaca with falcata trees which helps in better agricultural productivity. While most of the other farmers tend one to two hectares only, he is able to tend six hectares through the years of hardwork.Ribbon cutting: VP Leni Robredo led the cutting of ribbon in a turn-over of livelihood subsidies to the Abaca Farmers, with Piagapo Mayor Ali Sumandar, Vice governor Mamintal “Bombit” Adiong, Jr., and Mohammad “Malik” Datumanong represented the farmer.

[]

09/03/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/03/09/robredo-turned-over-livelihood-subsidies-to-abaca-farmers-in-lanao-del-sur/

Manila Bulletin

Vendors offer amulets in the time of ‘Tokhang’

Oplan Tokhang is the Philippine National Police’s campaign that has prompted thousands of drug users and pushers to surrender.Street vendors at the periphery of Quiapo Church may have the answer.Since President Duterte took office and launched his deadly war against drugs, people who fear they may be on his cross hairs have sought the help of charm traders in Quiapo, Manila.Erica Policarpio, 26, said about 20 male clients looking for stones that promised invisibility and protection from bullets had approached her stall at Plaza Miranda the past months.Love potion, or gayuma, remains the best-seller, she said. But increasingly men have come to her seeking stones called “niyog na bato,” or stone pellets, or “ngipin ng kidlat,” or teeth of thunder.“They asked me what the stone ngipin ng kidlat was for. I told them it’s a protection against bullets and knives. They replied: ‘That means I won’t be subjected to tokhang then?’”These men also wanted to know if buying niyog na bato guaranteed invisibility from policemen.“If we become invisible,” Policarpio said, recounting her other client’s concern, “that means that police wouldn’t see us anymore?”Oplan Tokhang, however, has taken a different meaning, especially in slums where many “surrenderers” were later killed by either policemen or unidentified gunmen.More than 7,000 people, most of them reportedly involved in drugs, have been killed since July 2016.Some obviously are seeking salvation from the perceived magic of invisibility available in the makeshift shops around the church of the miraculous Black Nazarene.Policarpio inherited her space from her father, a faith healer, who learned the trade from a Mangyan family in Oriental Mindoro.She said the stones and petrified seeds, which had been made into bracelets, were all sourced from a supposedly mystical “seventh mountain in Bulalacao” town.“We refuse customers who specifically ask us for stones that can help them evade Tokhang because we know they’re going to use them for evil deeds,” she said.

['Aie Balagtas See']

2017-11-12 00:57:36+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/873145/vendors-offer-amulets-in-the-time-of-tokhang

Inquirer

MMDA suspends ‘truck ban’ for Asean

~By RJ CARBONELLTHE Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) suspended the implementation of truck ban ordinances by local government units (LGUs) in Metro Manila during the duration of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. “[MMDA] has issued various traffic advisories relating to ‘lockdown areas/rerouting’ and ‘truck ban,’ among others, to be effective from November 11 to 15,” the resolution dated November 6 stated. It said there is an urgent need for LGUs of the National Capital Region to suspend the truck ban to ensure the “timely delivery of goods and services” in the metropolis.

['Rj Carbonell']

2017-11-12 00:57:36+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/mmda-suspends-truck-ban-asean/362212/

Manila Times

Grave locator, live streaming features at Manila North, South cemeteries up

The usual problem of locating tombs in the two sprawling cemeteries maintained by the city of Manila on All Saints’ and Souls’ Days prompted the local government unit to launch grave-locator and live streaming features on the websites of Manila North and South Cemeteries.With this, more convenient visits to the two city-run public cemeteries are expected.“Every year, we encounter various problems and inconveniences, given the millions of people who visit the cemeteries. We are assuring the Manileños that we will continue to improve our services,” Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada said.Through the cemeteries’ official websites’ the cemetery-goers can plan their trips to the cemeteries ahead to avoid the perennial hassles they encounter during this time of the year.Daniel Tan, director of the Manila North and South Cemeteries, advised cemetery-goers to plan their visits first by logging on to the cemeteries’ websites (http://www.manilasouthcemetery.com.ph and http://manilanorthcemetery.com/).According to Tan, the grave locator is a new search box where anyone could accurately determine the exact location of the tomb of their loved ones.The websites also have maps of both cemeteries, complete with street names and plot numbers of the graves.“High-tech ‘to (This is high-technology). You’ll just type in the name of the deceased and it will point you to the exact location of the tomb,” Tan stressed, stating that this feature will address the perennial problem of cemetery-goers who have forgotten the location of the tombs they plan to visit.Moreover, Tan said they will also offer live streaming from October 29 to November 2 that will show real-time footages in the main gates of the two cemeteries, enabling cemetery-goers to see the situation in both areas.In both cemeteries, additional closed circuit television cameras (CCTVs) were also installed for security purposes. There are now 16 CCTV units at the South Cemetery and 32 at the North, he added.

['Napolion Pillas']

26/10/2016 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2016/10/26/grave-locator-live-streaming-features-at-manila-north-south-cemeteries-up/

Manila Bulletin

Nepal to vote in local polls after two decades

Nepal votes in local elections on Sunday for the first time in 20 years, a major step in the young republic’s difficult transition to democracy more than a decade after the end of its civil war.The government hopes the elections, staggered over two phases, will lead to a general election later in the year. A recent dispute between the poor Himalayan nation’s Maoist-led government and the head of the Supreme Court had threatened to derail voting.Nepal has suffered from years of political instability since emerging from a decade-long Maoist insurgency that ended in 2006 and the abolition of the monarchy two years later.Its democratic journey took a hit in 2015 when some regional groups rejected a constitution approved by bigger political parties, saying it concentrated power among the hill elite that has long dominated politics.Analysts say the absence of local-level elected government bodies has delayed development work, boosted corruption and undermined efforts to rebuild areas devastated by two earthquakes in 2015, which killed nearly 9,000 people and displaced three million.Survivors of the country’s worst disaster on record still languish in temporary shelters made from tarpaulin sheets and bamboo. The government has been criticized for failing to spend $4.1 billion pledged for rebuilding.“Politicians are coming to us asking for votes. But we’ll only vote for those who give us a permanent house,” Bikram Prajapati, 40, said from his zinc-roofed hut in a suburb of the capital city, Kathmandu.The final phase of the local polls is set for June 14, when the restive southern plains, home to ethnic minority groups demanding greater representation, will head to the ballot box.Fourteen million Nepalis are eligible to vote.Prime Minister Prachanda, a former Maoist rebel commander who still goes by his nom de guerre, is expected to stand down after the vote under a power-sharing deal with Sher Bahadur Deuba, chief of the Nepali Congress party.

[]

12/05/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/05/12/nepal-to-vote-in-local-polls-after-two-decades/

Manila Bulletin

Guia Gomez to defy recall notice

San Juan City Mayor Guia Gomez on Thursday said she will not accept the election recall notice from the Commission on Elections (Comelec), and has directed her lawyers to challenge it in court.Former Vice Mayor Francisco Zamora had accused Gomez of delaying the process for election recall by not accepting the notice of sufficiency.“I will not accept this recall and will allow my lawyers to challenge it legally,” Guia said in a press conference at her house.“I find the recall election notice unfair…[The Comelec] doesn’t know much of San Juan,” she added.The mayor said she opted not to speak about the issue during the Christmas season. “For God’s sake! It is Christmas last month. I wanted to respect the birth of the messiah that is why I did not speak,” she said.In a separate press conference Thursday, Zamora advised Gomez to just go to Comelec San Juan and accept the notice so the signatures of around 30, 000 people can be validated.“If she is really confident that she won, why doesn’t she go to the Comelec San Juan and accept it personally,” he said.Her defiance, according to Zamora, is an insult to Comelec’s credibility.“The Comelec En Banc voted 4-0, in favor of the election recall. They found it ‘sufficient in form and substance’,” Zamora, the newly elected secretary general of PDP-LABAN, said.“She’s somewhat belittling the Comelec’s decision.”Gomez, the former partner of Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, ran against Zamora in the 2016 mayoral elections. She was declared winner after garnering 28, 828 votes, to Zamora’s 27, 604 votes.

[]

11/01/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/01/11/guia-gomez-to-defy-recall-notice/

Manila Bulletin

AFP inflicts heavy casualties on Maute group in Lanao

Continuing military offensives for the past three days against the Maute Group in Lanao del Sur has resulted in the death of about 30 lawless elements, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines.In a statement from the103rd Infantry Brigade of the First Infantry (Tabak) Division, Brig. Gen. Nixon Fortes said the military was also able to seize and occupy “the enemy’s main encampment with fortified bunkers (and) running trenches in Sitio Pagalungan, Barangay Gacap in Piagapo, Lanao del Sur.Among those recovered in the Maute camp was the body of a slain member, an Indonesian passport, components for improvised explosive devices (IEDs), cellular phones and a video camera.He said three soldiers were wounded in the operations.According to First Infantry Division Commander Brig. Gen. Joselito Bautista, the military “used a combination of lethal and non-lethal methords to force (the Maute) group out of their stronghold.”“Precision air strikes made the group break up into smaller groups to minimize collateral damage,” Bautista said.He added that the “continuous focused military operations were in accordance with the directive issued by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.”“Terrorists will be confronted and dealt with harshly. Peace and order must be attained in order for development to come to Piagapo and adjacent municipalities,” Bautista underscored.Meanwhile, the military offensives have displaced at least 530 families involving 2,444 individuals as of Sunday, relief officials reported yesterday.The bulk of evacuees, or 616 families with 1,828 persons, come from barangays Gacap, Tapocan, Pantaon and Tambo in Piagapo town where soldiers, backed by artillery and air support, launched offensives last Saturday against guerrillas of the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups, officials said.In Balindong, which is adjacent to Piagapo, 114 families, or about 600 individuals, fled their homes at the height of military bombardments on suspected hideouts of the bandits, provincial information officer Salma Jayne Tamano said, citing reports from local disaster risk reduction and management council (MDRRMC).Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon, anointed by the terror group Islamic State (IS) ISIS as its leader in the Philippines and Asia, is reportedly in Lanao del Sur to recruit more jihadists, according to Joint Task Force ZAMPELAN (Zamboanga Peninsula and Lanao) officials.Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana had earlier claimed that Hapilon “moved to Central Mindanao allegedly on the behest of the IS people in the Middle East to find out if )if the region is more conducive to the establishment of an organization because…Basilan and Jolo are too small.”The military offensives are confined to barangays Gacap, Tapocan, Pantaon and Tambo, which all lie at the border of this city with Piagapo, Balindong and Marantao towns, according to residents who fear that the encounter between government forces and the terror groups could result in a long-drawn conflict.

[]

24/04/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/04/24/afp-inflicts-heavy-casualties-on-maute-group-in-lanao/

Manila Bulletin

Trapo after all?

Is President Duterte turning out to be a trapo (traditional politician) after all?His budget secretary has indicted, so to speak, his boss as just another promising politician, one who makes promises that cannot be fulfilled once elected.Mr. Duterte got much flak for vacillating over a P2,000-a-month raise he promised SSS pensioners. Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said what “candidate Duterte” promised and what President Duterte can do are two different things.That’s saying that one, Duterte didn’t know what he was talking about when he made the promise. Or two, he’s just another traditional politician who promises the moon to get elected.During the presidential debates, he bragged about getting on a jet-ski and going to the Spratlys to plant the Philippine flag in defiance of China’s intrusive activities there.He boasted about subduing the Abu Sayyaf in one week. He belittled the strength and staying power of the Maute Group in Davao.He promised to destroy Sen. Leila de Lima, calling her an immoral woman and intimately involved with drug lords and in the illegal drug trade. And yet, despite assurances of his talkative justice secretary that they have airtight cases against the senator, they haven’t filed any credible cases against her.And now his curious appointments. First, Martin Dino as chairman of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, which was patently a political payback for Dino giving way to Duterte to run for president last May.And then Mocha Uson, a sexy dancer and sex blogger (who likes to call Duterte-bashers “mga bugok”), to be a board member of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board. Which is like appointing Kerwin Espinoza as the drug czar.I’ve not criticized the President’s appointments before. It’s because I’m not particularly concerned about who gets appointed as long they’re capable of doing their jobs and that they’re people of integrity.(I’m not even concerned about nepotism, the practice of appointing family members or close friends. My personal joke about nepotism is that it’s okay as long as you keep it within the family.)What I’m pointing out here is that obvious payback appointments make the appointing power just another old-style politician who pays back political favors with appointments.I don’t care who gets appointed. But if they mess up, then they should answer for their mistakes.In the end, the appointing power is responsible for his or her appointments. If and when they fail to perform according to expectations and the law, then the appointing power must be taken to task for the failures.It seems Mr. Duterte doesn’t bother about vetting some of his appointments. Incoming presidents usually have a vetting or selection committee to pour over prospective appointees’ resumes. And during a president’s incumbency it’s the function of the presidential management staff to check out candidates for positions in the executive branch.The bottom line is that it’s the prerogative of the president to appoint anyone he likes. The Roman emperor Caligula made his horse Incitatus a senator and promised to appoint him a consul.A leader’s appointments define not only his administration but also his own character and ability to detect talent and abilities. If we go by those standards, executive appointments aren’t simple sinecures to be dispensed whimsically to pay back past favors.Or maybe they are, if you’re a trapo.***Tantrum Ergo. Why do our TV newscasters yell at us, the audience, when they deliver the news? When they do that, they sound like fishmongers at the wet market. Or jeepney barkers enticing passengers.

['June Fulgado', 'Melissa Salazar']

18/01/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/01/18/trapo-after-all/

Manila Bulletin

Vietnamese hostage found dead, but 3 compatriots rescued in Tawi-Tawi

Rescue came too late for a Vietnamese hostage, but three of his companions still managed to emerge alive after a 10-month ordeal in the hands of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) in a rescue operation by the military in Tawi-Tawi early Friday morning.NguyinHuuToong was found dead by troops of the of the Naval Forces Western Mindanao and the Joint Task Force Tawi-Tawi who launched a special rescue operation near Kang Tipayan Island in Languyan, Tawi-Tawi at around 7:45 a.m. Friday.Apparently, Nguyin had passed away even before the rescue operations could be staged, as he reportedly expired while under captivity because of lingering illness.But the operations did not go for naught as Xuan Vien, Bui TrungDuc and NgutenQuangHuy were rescued alive in the operation.This was perhaps one of the main reasons why President Rodrigo RoaDuterte, who is in Da Nang Vietnam to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit had to forego attending the gala dinner tendered by host Vietnam.According to reports, Duterte wanted to oversee the operations to secure the safe return of the Vietnamese sailors.“The Vietnamese hostages were transported by navy personnel to Zamboanga City for proper disposition and medical treatment,” said Rear Admiral Rene Medina, the NFWM Commander.“Through the operations conducted by our marines and navy, we successfully recovered the Vietnamese hostages off Tawi-Tawi waters, and we mean to intensify our offensives to pressure the bandits to yield,” said Brigadier General CustodioParcon, Jr., commander of the Joint Task Force Sulu.The hostages, all crew members of Marine Vessel Giang Hai 5, were abducted by the Abu Sayyaf bandits off the waters of Pearl Bank, Pangutaran, Sulu last February 25.Of the 17 crew members boarding the said vessel, two were killed while attempting to escape from the Abu Sayyaf. Ten were rescued by the troops, while the group of Xuan Vien was forcibly taken and transported by the bandits to mainland Sulu.As of this date, there are seven foreigners and nine Filipinos who are still held by the Abu Sayyaf in the hinterlands of Sulu.“Operations by our ground units continue to yield positive results as we relentlessly pursue the bandits to thwart their kidnapping ploys and rescue their victims,” said Lieutenant General Carlito G. Galvez, Jr., commander of the Western Mindanao Command.“Through the resolve of our Joint Task Forces, we continue to reach our objectives with the end state of defeating the Abu Sayyaf.“My commendations to Joint Task Force Tawi-tawi and the Naval Forces Western Mindanao troops,” he added.Due to a lingering illness, HuuTrong succumbed to death during his captivity.“The Vietnamese hostages were transported by navy personnel to Zamboanga City for proper disposition and medical treatment,” said Rear Admiral Rene Medina, the NFWM Commander.“Through the operations conducted by our marines and navy, we successfully recovered the Vietnamese hostages off Tawi-Tawi waters, and we mean to intensify our offensives to pressure the bandits to yield,” said Brigadier General CustodioParcon, Jr., commander of the Joint Task Force Sulu.The hostages, all crew members of Marine Vessel Giang Hai 5, were abducted by the Abu Sayyaf bandits off the waters of Pearl Bank, Pangutaran, Sulu on February 25, 2017.Of the 17 crew members boarding the said vessel, two were killed while attempting to escape from the Abu Sayyaf. Ten were rescued by the troops, while the group of Xuan Vien was forcibly taken and transported by the bandits to mainland Sulu.As of this date, there are seven foreigners and nine Filipinos who are still held by the Abu Sayyaf in the hinterlands of Sulu.“Operations by our ground units continue to yield positive results as we relentlessly pursue the bandits to thwart their kidnapping ploys and rescue their victims,” said Lieutenant General Carlito G. Galvez, Jr., commander of the Western Mindanao Command.“Through the resolve of our Joint Task Forces, we continue to reach our objectives with the end state of defeating the Abu Sayyaf.“My commendations to Joint Task Force Tawi-tawi and the Naval Forces Western Mindanao troops,” he added.

[]

10/11/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/11/10/vietnamese-hostage-found-dead-but-3-compatriots-rescued-in-tawitawi/

Manila Bulletin

Car thieves face longer terms under new law

In the midst of the new administration’s relentless drive against crime, a revitalized law has been added to its arsenal.A new Anti-Carnapping Act imposes jail terms up to life imprisonment, a measure that its proponent, Sen. Grace Poe, hopes would deter a crime that has long been rampant across the country.Poe said President Duterte had “allowed the measure to lapse into law” 30 days after it was forwarded to Malacañang on June 16 and then President Benigno Aquino III took no action on it.“It is our hope that this new and comprehensive Anti-Carnapping Act imposing much stiffer penalties, alongside strict implementation by our law enforcers, will hinder the commission of this crime and give vehicle owners peace of mind,” Poe said, who sponsored the bill in the 16th Congress.AmendmentsThe new measure supplants the law against car theft enacted in 1972 and amendments to car theft penalties imposed by Republic Act No. 7659, or the law laying down penalties for heinous crimes.In pushing for the measure in May last year, Poe noted car thefts had totaled more than 44,000 from 2009 to 2013. In the first half of 2015 alone, car theft cases reached 10,039, nearly twice the 5,599 recorded during the same period in 2014.Under the new law, convicted car thieves face a jail term of 20-30 years, roughly double the 14 years and eight months to 17 years and four months under the old law.Higher penaltyThe penalty is higher if the crime involves “violence, intimidation and force,” with the jail term raised to 30 years and one day to up to 40 years, from the previous 17 to 30 years.If the crime results in murder or rape, the penalty is life imprisonment.A person who has knowledge of the crime but keeps quiet about it—regarded as “concealment of the crime of carnapping

['Tarra Quismundo']

2017-12-03 19:45:39+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/797685/car-thieves-face-longer-terms-under-new-law

Inquirer

Clear Marawi of terrorists before SONA, military told

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has asked military commanders in Marawi to clear the city of terrorists before President Rodrigo Duterte delivers his State of the Nation Address (Sona) before a joint session of Congress on July 24.Speaking to reporters on Monday, Lorenzana said he wanted the fighting to end before then so that Mr. Duterte could announce his plans for the rehabilitation of Marawi in his report to Congress.Lorenzana said 1,500 houses and buildings in the city still needed to be cleared of Maute terrorists and their Abu Sayyaf allies.“And at the rate of clearing of 70 to 100 houses per day, it will take them some time to clear the area,” he said.Hapilon hiding in mosqueAccording to Lorenzana, one of the leaders of the terrorists, Abu Sayyaf commander Isnilon Hapilon, who has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria, is still in the city.“According to our latest information, he’s still inside Marawi. In fact, there is an information we got this morning that he’s hiding in one of the mosques there,” Lorenzana said.He said government informants had been watching for Hapilon’s arrival at the Abu Sayyaf stronghold on Basilan Island but had not seen him there.Hapilon was not among three fighters from Marawi who arrived in Basilan a week ago, Lorenzana said.“So, we believe that he is still in Marawi,” he added.Lorenzana said Basilan locals were providing information to the military about Hapilon.$5-M bounty“The Yakans know that there is a $5-million price on the head of Hapilon, and it’s very tempting for them also to give us accurate report on his whereabouts so that they will also, maybe get some of the money,” he said.The $5-million bounty is offered by the US government.Lorenzana said the military was having a hard time clearing Marawi of terrorists because the troops were used to jungle warfare, not to urban fighting.“This kind of problem is very difficult … it is urban fighting, which a lot of our troops there are not prepared … They are learning as they go along on how to fight in this built-up area,” he said.“If I were there, I would like the job to be finished immediately. [But] the enemy is also very wily and very resourceful,” he added.Lorenzana said the military had casualties from the 10th Infantry Battalion last week because the troops advanced in an effort to secure more ground without knowing there were still terrorists in some of the houses they left behind.“They were so aggressive to finish the job. They were able to go, go, go without knowing that the houses that they left behind still had (terrorists). So … they were shot in the back,” he said.“They had to go back and clear the houses again. So this is a big challenge. We have also to give maybe leeway to our troops to do what they want to do there,” he added.Malacañang said that as of July 2, 452 people had died in the fighting in Marawi, including 336 terrorists, 84 soldiers and policemen, and 32 civilians.Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said government troops had rescued 1,717 civilians and recovered 402 high-powered firearms.

['Philip C. Tubeza']

2017-12-03 19:45:39+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/910717/clear-marawi-of-terrorists-before-sona-military-told

Inquirer

Cebu bettor bags P29.7M lotto pot

A lone bettor from Cebu bagged the P29.7 million Grandlotto 6/55 jackpot of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) .Alexander Balutan, general manager of the PCSO, said the bettor correctly guessed the six-number winning combination 37-35-45-11-24-22 during Saturday night’s draw.The winning ticket was bought from a lotto outlet in Gaisano Capital Mall in Danao City, Cebu.Apart from the lone jackpot winner, nine other bettors will receive P81,680 each for getting right five of the six-number combination.

['The Manila Times']

2017-12-03 19:45:39+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/cebu-bettor-bags-p29-7m-lotto-pot/366511/

Manila Times

Speak up, INC folk told

“For the sake of our church, be brave and tell the truth about our wayward brethren.”That was the message posted on Facebook on Saturday by Isaias Samson Jr., an expelled minister of Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), whose leaders began conducting a loyalty check on members after internal squabbles over finances and control of the 101-year-old indigenous Christian group became public on Thursday.An INC spokesperson also said on Saturday the church was considering filing charges against renegades who were spreading false accusations against its leaders.In a series of messages posted on Facebook, Samson, in hiding and claiming his family had been threatened, appealed to members of INC to disclose what they knew about alleged corruption and questionable practices by the church’s leaders.Samson warned that the continued silence of other INC ministers and members was imperiling the entire church when only a few were at fault.Samson has emerged as the most vocal critic of the INC leadership amid the public unraveling of the troubles within the politically influential church, run by the Manalo family since its founding in 1914.The troubles became public on Wednesday night when Cristina “Tenny” Villanueva Manalo, widow of INC executive minister Eraño Manalo, and her son Felix Nathaniel “Angel” Villanueva Manalo posted a video on YouTube appealing for help and claiming their lives were in danger. They also claimed that some INC ministers had been kidnapped.INC expelled them on Thursday for trying to sow disunity and gain control of the church.“You have always said how sad and angry you are because of the corrupt practices that some members of the Sanggunian (advisory council), and their actions not just in terms of money but about rules and activities in the Iglesia,” Samson said in a four-minute video, one of three posted since Friday night on a Facebook account under the name “Sher Lock.”A source from Samson’s group said the page’s administrator was “a person who has the courage to reveal the truth.”“You know the grievances of our brethren, like those in the Central Office who have been complaining about the burdensome tasks they were being asked to do. But why are you still ignoring it?” Samson said in a video apparently taken using a phone camera just before he escaped Manila on Friday because of alleged threats to his life.Do something“God has been giving us opportunities. You might say we should just wait for God to do something. But don’t you think what you’ve been feeling about the situation is God’s way of moving you to do something?” said Samson, currently in an undisclosed location outside Metro Manila.The former minister, also removed as editor in chief of INC’s official publication Pasugo (God’s Message), was the first to come out publicly and speak about the weeklong “torture” he and his family went through while “under house arrest” allegedly ordered by church leaders.The family was held on July 16, after Samson was accused of writing subversive articles about INC in a blog under the name Antonio Ramirez Ebangelista. While admitting he was a reformist, Samson denied he was Ebangelista.The family escaped on Thursday, in what Samson described as God’s work.Samson faced the media on Thursday, hours after his escape, confirming the detention of at least 10 other ministers and detailing corrupt practices of certain members of the INC advisory council.In his video appeal, Samson called out other INC members for doing nothing.“We say we love the church, that we want the church to go back to the straight path, to holiness. But why are you not taking action? Why don’t you listen? Prove to God that you are ministers and [workers] of the Iglesia,” Samson said.He called on other INC members to unite against people responsible for wrongdoings in the church, lest “the entire church will continue to tread the path toward evil, and even we won’t be saved.”“My only wish is for you to prove, to show, to reveal the corruption that you’ve seen. Only when we’re united could this be done,” he said.Samson also appealed to INC spokespersons Edwil Zabala and Bienvenido Santiago to stop speaking falsehoods, saying they also knew about the mismanagement that was plaguing the church.“We are friends. We were together for a long time. I know you know what’s happening. I just don’t understand why people like you who are ministers would not say what’s truly inside you, what you really see,” Samson said in another video.“I hope that if you will continue to speak, you will serve as spokespersons of God, not of the people you are defending. Remember, corruption can never be denied. It will be revealed … God will reveal it,” he said.But Zabala said the INC leadership was considering filing charges against the church’s critics.“At this point, we are not discounting any of the options we’re looking into. We intend to explore all legal and moral remedies available to us to clear the name and reputation of the INC,” Zabala said in a telephone interview.He also said the INC would face the allegations against it in a proper forum, where it could present “the truth.”“[T]he INC can answer whatever accusations, whatever proof its accusers supposedly have against it,” Zabala said, challenging INC critics to produce evidence against the church.He did not say, however, whom the INC was planning to sue.Loyalty checkAn INC member said on Saturday that the church leadership appeared to be conducting a loyalty check, with ministers directing followers by text message to report to their local secretariats.The source showed the Inquirer a text message from his local minister but asked that the contents of the message not be published.He said the local minister was also directing followers to submit their latest ID pictures.“The church is obviously doing a loyalty check. This is not just a way to update our membership since we have mechanisms to do that. And we go to our local churches every week,” the source said.Other INC members put up a show of unity on Saturday ahead of the church’s 101st anniversary on Monday.Unity gamesThousands of INC followers gathered at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan province, for “unity games” despite the turmoil in their church.Police deployed 500 officers to the INC’s Ciudad de Victoria, where the stadium and the 55,000-seat Philippine Arena are located.Chief Supt. Roland Santos, Central Luzon Police director, said the police were expecting protests at the site during the INC anniversary.But a police officer who is an INC member said the church did not expect problems during the anniversary celebration.“INC members are forbidden to hold rallies and protests. No one will take part in protests here,” the policeman said.The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) urged Catholics to offer prayers for the INC to overcome its troubles.Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, CBCP president, said Angel Manalo had asked for prayers “and whoever asks for prayers, we should pray for them regardless of their condition, regardless of their nationality, regardless of their belief.”Villegas said he hoped INC followers “would be able to surpass this predicament that they are in and that they would be able to find peace.”–With reports from Tina G. Santos and Marlon Ramos in Manila and from Carmela Reyes-Estrope, Inquirer Central LuzonRELATED STORIESAccusing Chris Brown, Iglesia ni Cristo faces own legal probe‘Deep Throat’ shakes up Iglesia Ni Cristo

['Tarra Quismundo']

07/10/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/707740/speak-up-inc-folk-told

Inquirer

Airport security screener won’t press charges vs Bertiz

The airport security screener has decided not to press chargers against ACTS-OFW party-list Rep. Aniceto Bertiz III after harassing him at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Sept 29.On Tuesday, Hamilton Abdul with his father went to the Office of Transportation Security (OTS) head executive assistant Napoleon Cuaton.According to Cuaton, Abdul won’t pursue charges against Bertiz for fear that the ACTS-OFW party-list representative might get back at him.Cuaton also added that they cannot force Abdul to file charges against the congressman and assures that OTS is always there to assist him.Bertiz drew flak online after disobeying security protocol and harassing and confiscating the security ID of Abdul at NAIA terminal 2.The House of Representatives with 159 votes reprimanded Bertiz over the incident.

[]

10/10/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/10/10/airport-security-screener-wont-press-charges-vs-bertiz/

Manila Bulletin

Abus behead teenage captive

Abu Sayyaf bandits beheaded an 18-year-old male captive in Indanan, Sulu province, on Tuesday after they failed to get ransom from the boy’s family, the military confirmed yesterday.In a report to Armed Forces of the Philippines headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) said the head of Patrick James Almodovar was found inside a plastic bag that was dumped by three motorcycle-riding men at Kilometer 2 in Barangay Kajatian, Indanan, around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.The report said local police recovered the bag and put the head through forensic examination.Almodovar was kidnapped by the Ajang-Ajang faction of the Abu Sayyaf in Barangay Asturias in Jolo, Sulu, on July 16.‘Barbaric murder’Citing intelligence information, Maj. Filemon Tan, spokesperson for the Westmincom, said Almodovar was beheaded in Barangay Buanza about 3 p.m. on Tuesday, after the bandits failed to receive the ransom they had demanded from the boy’s family.Tan did not say how much the Abu Sayyaf had demanded, but the family said the bandits wanted P1 million.The military condemned the “barbaric murder perpetrated by this terror group,” the Westmincom said in a statement.“The beheading of an innocent man done by the [Abu Sayyaf] is an absolute affront to the peace-loving Moros in the Philippines,” it said.The victim’s mother, Aurora Almodovar, urged President Duterte to punish her son’s killers.“They deserve the same punishment. President [Duterte], we ask you to finish them all,” Aurora, a court stenographer, said in an interview with the Inquirer yesterday.She said she had talked with her son by phone before the bandits killed him. “My son pleaded with us to do everything to save him,” she said.P1-M ransomShe said the bandits had demanded P1 million, but all the family could manage was P100,000, borrowed from friends and relatives.She said she told her son to plead with his captors to reduce the amount, but apparently the bandits refused.A niece of Aurora, who declined to be identified, said the family was praying the rosary when the Abu Sayyaf called to say they had beheaded Almodovar. Four hours later, his head was found in Kajatian.“No one helped us, but now everyone is talking about my son,” Aurora said.The Abu Sayyaf, a brutal group blamed for bombings, extortions, kidnappings and beheadings in the South, are believed to be holding at least 16 more captives, including foreigners.The President has ordered the military to destroy the Abu Sayyaf.The military said at least 8,000 soldiers were scouring the jungles of Sulu and Basilan to destroy the bandits.

['Cynthia D. Balana']

21/04/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/809888/abus-behead-teenage-captive

Inquirer

Andanar: PH-US ties up for reboot

Relations between the United States and the Philippines could have a “reboot” under President-elect Donald Trump, a Malacañang official said yesterday.Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar predicted a thawing of US-Philippines ties after President Rodrigo Duterte’s seven-minute phone conversation on Saturday with the newly elected US leader “went very well.”“It showed that there is a big possibility that we will have a reboot of relationship,” Andanar told the state-owned dzRB radio station.“And from what President Duterte told us, it seems he would be comfortable with President-elect Donald Trump (who) wished the President well in his campaign against illegal drugs,” he said.Andanar said Mr. Duterte, who has been called by some as the “Donald Trump” of Asia for his propensity for issuing gaudy, controversial statements, was satisfied with Trump’s support for his drug war and his respect for the country’s sovereignty.But Andanar refused to identify in which areas the Duterte administration could solicit Trump’s help in improving the US-Philippines relations.“I cannot go ahead of the President on how to reboot our relationship with the United States… because there are so many aspects in our relationship,” he said.It will be up to the President and Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. to decide which aspects our country can reboot with the United States, he continued.Good rapportOn Saturday, the President spoke with Trump over the phone as he congratulated the billionaire business tycoon in his recent victory as the successor of outgoing US President Barack Obama.“I could sense a good rapport, an animated President-elect Trump. And he was wishing me success in my campaign against the drug problem,” Mr. Duterte said of his conversation with Trump.“He understood the way we are handling it and I said that there’s nothing wrong in protecting a country. It was a bit very encouraging in the sense that I supposed that what he really wanted to say was that we would be the last to interfere in the affairs of your own country,” the President said.The usually warm USPhilippines relations suddenly turned cold after Mr. Duterte openly assailed Obama and the American government for calling him out over his ruthless drug war, which has led to the killings of nearly 6,000 drug personalities since the President was sworn in on June 30.White House visitMr. Duterte said Trump was “sensitive” and understanding about his crackdown and was encouraged by what he interpreted as Trump’s indication he would not interfere.Mr. Duterte’s special assistant, Christopher Go, had earlier said in a text message to media that Trump had invited the President to visit the White House next year.There appeared to be confusion, however. Duterte mentioned an invite to Washington and New York, and that Trump asked him to notify him of his presence “if I’m around.”A statement issued by Trump’s transition team made no mention of that. It said the two men “noted the long history of friendship” between their countries and would work closely on “matters of shared interest and concern.”Duterte made waves when he visited China in October and announced his “separation” from the United States.In five months in office, he has upended Philippine foreign policy by berating the United States, pursuing a new alliance with Russia and also China, with which Manila has a history of bitter disputes.His diplomacy has created jitters among Asian nations concerned about Beijing’s influence and Washington’s regional staying power.

['Marlon Ramos']

09/04/2016 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/850662/andanar-ph-us-ties-up-for-reboot

Inquirer

Tribunal gives way to Marcos protest

Former Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has secured a critical legal victory in his attempt to unseat Vice President Leni Robredo, whom he has accused of fraud in last year’s elections.In a resolution dated Jan. 24, the Supreme Court, acting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), said that the complaint of Marcos was sufficient in form and substance and was “beyond dispute,” paving the way for a formal hearing.The eight-page resolution “emphasized that, as to the veracity of the protestant’s allegations, nothing had yet been proved.”“The protest is only sufficient for the tribunal to proceed and give the protestant the opportunity to prove his case in accordance with the 2010 PET rules,” according to the resolution, a copy of which was released to the media by the Marcos camp on Thursday.“We are hoping that with this resolution, there will be an end to all these delays and we can finally move forward. There is a need to ferret out the truth as to what really transpired during the vice presidential race last May,” said Marcos’ lawyer Victor Rodriguez in a statement. “We just want the truth to come out. It’s that simple.”In upholding Marcos’ complaint, the poll tribunal dismissed Robredo’s argument that it had no jurisdiction over the matter since the former senator had questioned the authenticity of the certificates of canvass (COCs).Robredo’s lawyers said the issue should have been raised by the namesake son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos through a preproclamation case in Congress, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers, as spelled out in Republic Act No. 9369, or the Election Automation Law.Robredo erredBut the PET said Robredo erred in claiming that the tribunal did not have the authority to hear Marcos’ complaint, arguing that Section 4, Article VII, of the 1987 Constitution stated that the tribunal “shall be the sole judge of all elections contests relating to the election, returns and disqualifications of the President or Vice President of the Philippines.”“The phrase ‘election, returns and qualifications’ refers to all matters affecting the validity of the contestee’s title, which includes questions on the validity, authenticity and correctness of the COCs,” it said.Romulo Macalintal, Robredo’s lawyer, dismissed the PET ruling as simply “a procedural matter.”“It only means that the PET will proceed with the case. It does not in any way reflect the validity or merits of any allegation of fraud or irregularity contesting the proclamation of Vice President Leni Robredo,” Macalintal said in a statement.Macalintal said the case would still go through the usual tedious and lengthy process of revision and recount of the ballots.“The ballot boxes and their contents would be retrieved from various provinces to be brought to the PET for the recount,” he said.Macalintal said the purpose of assailing the substance of Marcos’ protest was to verify its compliance with the strict requirements of the rules as applied by the Supreme Court in various election protests.

['Erika Sauler', 'Marlon Ramos']

2017-08-26 20:38:11+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/872391/tribunal-gives-way-to-marcos-protest

Inquirer

Uber to resume service soon after hefty fine

Uber said on Saturday it expects to resume operations in the Philippines “soon” after regulators agreed to lift a ban slapped against the American ride-sharing giant in exchange for a fine.The government meted Uber a one-month suspension on August 14 following a tussle over driver permits, sparking public outrage as some 66,000 vehicles were forced off the streets.Hundreds of thousands of Manila commuters find Uber and its ride-sharing rivals welcome alternatives to the country’s notoriously poor and overcrowded buses and trains, run-down taxis and irascible cab drivers.But late on Friday, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said it would lift the ban following an Uber appeal. It ordered the US firm to pay a fine of P190 million and give its drivers financial aid for lost earnings.“The online ride-sharing services of the respondent USI [Uber] will be restored when it has paid the amount of fine and the said financial assistance remitted,” an LTFRB resolution said.Uber said it would comply with the ruling, which also requires it to pay about $391,000 (about P20.07 million) a day in financial assistance – split between its Philippine drivers – until the company restores its operations.“We’re working hard to meet the conditions for the lifting of the suspension and hope to resume operations as soon as possible,” it said in a statement that did not give a timetable.The LTFRB last year imposed a moratorium on the processing of new applications for ride-sharing services as it studied how to regulate a growing industry.Officials said while Southeast Asian rival Grab eventually followed the directive, Uber defied it, while other transport groups accused Uber of acting above the law.Uber said this month it was accepting new applications for vehicles but was not processing them pending its discussions with regulators.It also urged the government to simplify the accreditation process, with a representative telling a congressional enquiry: “We cannot impose 1900s regulations on today’s technological innovations.”Poe supports LTFRB fine on UberSen. Grace Poe on Saturday said the “hefty” P190 million fine imposed on Uber before it can resume operation should serve as a lesson to the ride-sharing firm to follow government regulations.She said the payment of the penalty as a pre-condition before it can resume operations “should be enough to make Uber rethink its actions and reevaluate its strategy in testing the extent of government regulations.”Poe supports the decision of the LTFRB to penalize Uber with a fine instead of having it serve the remainder of its 30-day suspension.The LTFRB said it arrived at the amount “by taking into consideration the number of days that respondent should be suspended in relation to the daily average income.”The board suspended Uber for violating its directive not to accept new drivers into its system. Uber later appealed the suspension order and asked to be fined instead. Uber was suspended since August15 and has its suspension has 19 remaining days.Uber reportedly earns around P10 million daily. The LTFRB multiplied this amount to the 19 remaining days or suspension period and arrived at P190 million. The money goes to the National Treasury.“Likewise, I welcome the P20 million financial assistance Uber has to pay its drivers daily, which also serves as a form of penalty,” she said.However, she deplored that the LTFRB issued the decision late on Friday afternoon, “effectively taking out any opportunity for Uber to pay the penalties.”“It is frustrating to think that we have a long weekend ahead of us and people will have to suffer the inconvenience of having limited transportation choices in going around the Metro with their families,” she said.“How will Uber be able to immediately comply with the LTFRB decision given that banks are closed during the weekend?” said Poe, chair of the Senate Committee on Public Services.with AFP

['Bernadette E. Tamayo']

2017-08-26 20:38:11+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/uber-resume-service-soon-hefty-fine/346885/

Manila Times

Another stop earmarked for Mindanao Rail System

Mudiang in Bunawan, Davao Terminal, and Toril.He said the Buda area, which is also considered a major entry and exit point of the city, was left out in the original plan of the Mindanao Railway.According to DOTr, the first segment of the railway, which will run from Tagum, Davao, and Digos Cities will reduce travel time from 3.5 hours to 1.3 hours once it starts operating in 2022.It said that the first segment will not only “make travel faster, but also safer, more convenient and comfortable for passengers in the Tagum-Digos corridor.It will have stops in Tagum, Carmen, Panabo, Mudiang (in Bunawan, Davao City), Davao Terminal, Toril. Sta. Cruz, and Digos.A 10-hectare depot will be built in Tagum.The recommendation added the rail line will be built with a single track, with provisions for future tracks and electrification. It will have six five-car passenger trains with three spare cars, four locomotives and 15 freight cars.Upon completion of the project, the DOTr expects the daily ridership of the Tagum-Davao-Digos segment to increase to 134,060 by 2022.In full, the 1,500-km. railway seeks to connect all key areas of the island such as Cagayan de Oro, Iligan, Zamboanga, Butuan, Surigao, General Santos, and Davao.Cortez said Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has created a team which is now planning the long-term transport projects in the city.“The City Government with directives of Mayor Sara, she has formed a group on traffic and transport to look into the ways and means in providing plans and program and solutions to traffic problem,” he said.

[]

08/08/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/08/08/another-stop-earmarked-for-mindanao-rail-system/

Manila Bulletin

President for Life? Duterte won’t do a Xi Jinping

There will be no President for Life Duterte.Unlike Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Rodrigo Duterte is not interested in extending his term beyond 2022, Malacañang said on Tuesday.The Chinese Communist Party proposed on Sunday to remove a constitutional clause limiting presidential service to just two terms in office.If approved by the rubber-stamp parliament at an annual meeting next month, the lifting of the presidential term limit would enable Xi, who is also the head of the Communist Party and the military, to serve for life.The plan has been met with vigorous opposition and ridicule on social media.Term limits on officeholders, including the president, have been in place since the adoption of the country’s 1982 constitution, which abolished lifetime tenure.Duterte won’t followIf Xi stays beyond the end of his term in 2023, President Duterte will not follow suit, according to his spokesperson, Harry Roque.“[T]he President has said he wants to step down earlier if possible and will not stay one minute longer beyond 2022 [when his term ends],” Roque told a press briefing in Malacañang.“That he will not stay longer than 2022 is absolute. He may step down earlier if the Constitution is amended,” he added.Roque declined to comment on the Chinese Communist Party’s plan to extend Xi’s term, only saying: “We don’t comment on the internal affairs of our friendly neighbors.”Asked if Mr. Duterte’s Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan might entertain similar plans, Roque replied: “That may be something that the president of China may or may not want, but as far as President Duterte is concerned, that’s out of the question to extend his term.”Since assuming the presidency, Mr. Duterte has sought to cultivate a close relationship with China in spite of Manila’s territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea.He has even joked about making the Philippines a province of China.

['Philippine Daily Inquirer']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/971857/president-for-life-duterte-wont-do-a-xi-jinping

Inquirer

Tesda chief warns vs scam

Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) chief Guiling Mamondiong has warned against a scam using his name to collect money supposedly for a drug rehabilitation program.In an advisory to all Tesda officials, Mamondiong asked them to ignore phone calls seeking to collect financial contributions from them purportedly upon his instructions.Mamondiong said that he never uses the telephone to communicate his directives or orders to any attached agency of Tesda. Tesda officials were also instructed to verify with his office any message relayed to them by phone.He said he had asked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate the person behind the racket, who had been calling in his behalf to seek monetary assistance for the government’s drug rehabilitation program.

['Jocelyn R. Uy']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/885554/tesda-chief-warns-vs-scam

Inquirer

CBCP to politicians: Don’t take advantage of Iglesia protest

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on Sunday appealed to politicians to refrain from exploiting or stoking the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) protest against the Aquino administration.Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the CBCP president, also urged the Catholic faithful to be charitable in the face of the INC crisis by refraining from spreading rumors and inflammatory statements.“No Catholic should fan the flames of dissension by rumormongering and by inflammatory statements. Let’s all be kind in disposition, respectful in speech and prudent in action,” Villegas said in a statement Sunday on the fourth day of the protests.The statement was a guideline offered by the Church hierarchy as to what the Catholic faithful and Filipino citizens in general must do as their brothers and sisters in INC continued to flock on Edsa-Shaw in Mandaluyong City.“No to opportunism,” Villegas stated. “No politician should gain political ground by abetting dissension or, worse, fostering disregard of the Constitution and the law.”“Neither is it morally correct for any political party to aim at gaining an advantage by controlling a religious sect known to propose to its members a chosen set of candidates,” Villegas continued.INC members were protesting Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s handling of a criminal complaint of serious illegal detention filed by expelled INC minister Isaias Samson Jr. against the sect’s governing council. INC said De Lima’s actions were a breach of the “separation of the church and the state” doctrine.Villegas asked the Catholic faithful to “pray without ceasing” for a peaceful and just resolution of the ongoing dispute in a manner both pleasing to God and in conformity with the democratic convictions articulated in the Constitution.“We ask that all respect the sacred character of the Edsa Shrine,” he said. INC protesters had earlier gathered on the shrine at the corner of Edsa and Ortigas Avenue. Jocelyn R. UyRELATED STORIESPoe may be charged with anti-graft law violation for supporting Iglesia ni Cristo

['Jocelyn R. Uy']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/717804/cbcp-to-politicians-dont-take-advantage-of-iglesia-protest

Inquirer

Cayetano’s red lines PR stunt, says Alejano

Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano’s disclosure of “red lines” regarding the country’s ongoing dispute with China over the West Philippine Sea are “nothing more than hollow public relations propaganda with no action or results to back them up,” an opposition lawmaker said on Friday.Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano, in a statement, said the imposition of red lines were “ironic considering that the Duterte administration is saying that the Philippines has limited defense capabilities.”“The Duterte administration, with the President himself, recognizes our limited defense capabilities. With such view, it suggests that Secretary Cayetano’s red lines could not be backed up by concrete actions if things come to worst,” he said.Alejano cautioned against the “vague motherhood statements and empty rhetoric” being used by the country’s top diplomat.“By bending their statements, the more will people lose their faith in him and the foreign policy of the President in the West Philippine Sea. The public needs clear, no-nonsense statements with concrete actions to back them up,” he said.Severe consequencesCayetano told a hearing in the House of Representatives last week that the Philippines had laid down four red lines in the West Philippine Sea that China should not cross.A red line is a condition set by a certain party which, when violated, may result to severe consequences, ranging from economic sanctions to military actions imposed by the party that set the condition.These red lines, as announced by Cayetano, are for the Chinese not to reclaim Scarborough Shoal, remove the Philippine Navy’s BRP Sierra Madre from its anchor in Ayungin Shoal, harass soldiers resupplying and conducting repairs on Philippine-occupied islands, and extract natural resources in the West Philippine Sea.Alejano said two of the four red lines had been crossed by China. Filipino troops resupplying the Sierra Madre outpost in Ayungin on May 11 were harassed by the Chinese coast guard and navy, he said.Alejano also said that Chinese fishermen had long been poaching Philippine waters.

['Jerome Aning']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/996671/cayetanos-red-lines-pr-stunt-says-alejano

Inquirer

One-armed terror chief wants to surrender

Radulan Sahiron, a notorious leader of the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu, had sent surrender feelers apparently realizing his age is catching up with him, according to the military.Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr., head of the military’s Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom), said Sahiron had tapped some elders in Sulu to relay his willingness to surrender.Galvez’s claim, however, could not be independently confirmed.But he said continuing military offensives against the Abu Sayyaf, a bandit group with links to the terror network al-Qaida, “is taking its toll particularly on Sahiron.” The one-armed Abu Sayyaf leader is believed to be in his 70s now.Galvez said military operations against the Abu Sayyaf had been relentless in all the group’s known hideouts in the Sulu towns of Talipao, Patikul and Maimbung.The Wesmincom chief said 11 members of the Abu Sayyaf from Tawi-Tawi had surrendered and it is not farfetched for the group’s top leaders to follow suit.“They now feel the heat of the operation, and they also feel the sincerity of the President (Duterte) to accept their surrender,” Galvez said.“Sahiron is contemplating on surrendering because he is already old,” he added.But Galvez said Sahiron wanted one condition for his surrender—that he not be turned over to the US government or other countries that want to try him for a spate of kidnappings involving their nationals.“He wants the Philippine government to handle his case,” Galvez said.Octavio Dinampo, former kidnap victim and professor of Mindanao State University in Sulu, said Sahiron is also suffering from diabetes.Dinampo said Sahiron has at least 70 followers who are also his relatives.Based on information from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) website, Sahiron’s capture or killing is covered by the US government’s rewards for justice program.The US Department of State is offering up to $1 million for Sahiron’s capture.The FBI had put Sahiron on its most wanted list of terrorists for his alleged involvement in the kidnapping of an American seized in Sulu and held captive for 23 days in 1993. The victim’s name was not immediately available.

['Philippine Daily Inquirer']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/889377/one-armed-terror-chief-wants-to-surrender

Inquirer

Mamasapano clash: President to tell all ‘at right time’

Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. acknowledged there were “sectors that are furious or losing patience, their faith in the government shaken because of the events at Mamasapano.”Coloma indicated that the President was willing to submit his account of the botched operation to the Philippine National Police’s board of inquiry. But Coloma did not say when the “right time” was for Mr. Aquino to tell all.“But we are hopeful that once the whole truth is known, once the whole country knows and understands what really happened, there would be a healing process,” he said.As Commander in Chief, Mr. Aquino has been increasingly under pressure to tell all on his exact role in the Jan. 25 operation in Maguindanao province that saw the killing of Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, alias “Marwan.” But it also cost the lives of 44 members of the elite Special Action Force (SAF) at the hands of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and other armed groups.Nearly a month after the bloody fiasco, Mr. Aquino has yet to provide clear answers on who was supervising dismissed SAF chief, Director Getulio Napeñas, during the ill-fated operation. It was also not clear who was updating the President about the incident and what orders he gave when he learned that SAF troopers were being attacked by the MILF.Resigned PNP chief Alan Purisima earlier admitted to senators that he told Napeñas not to inform his immediate superiors until the operation had begun. But he said he merely provided an “advice,” a claim that senators didn’t buy.The President’s silence has triggered speculations that he was in fact monitoring the operation through Purisima, his close friend and former bodyguard, even if the PNP chief was suspended.Both Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and PNP officer in charge, Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina, admitted they had been kept out of the loop about the whole operation.Coloma described as “encouraging” the MILF’s decision to return on Wednesday some of the firearms it seized from the fallen SAF commandos.“This is an encouraging development and it’s a sign that the MILF is ready to provide a concrete manifestation of their being the government’s partner in the peace process,” he said.Coloma said there was a “sense of urgency” on the part of the President to see such concrete manifestations.Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Thursday dismissed suggestions that Mr. Aquino speak now, saying it was better to await the outcome of the police inquiry.“It will help if (the President) issues a statement for those who are open-minded. But at this point in time, there are a lot of skeptics and they’d rather get their information elsewhere,” Trillanes said in a phone interview. Whatever Mr. Aquino says on his role in the massacre will become “moot” once the PNP board of inquiry releases its findings.

['Christian V. Esguerra']

31/07/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/674130/mamasapano-clash-president-to-tell-all-at-right-time

Inquirer

Maduro claims vote win; opposition vows protests

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro claimed victory on Monday in an internationally criticized election to pick a new assembly to rewrite the constitution, but the opposition vowed to keep protesting despite deadly clashes.Ten people were killed in a wave of bloodshed that swept Venezuela Sunday as Maduro defied an opposition boycott and international condemnation – including the threat of new US sanctions – to hold elections for a powerful new “Constituent Assembly.”Protesters attacked polling stations and barricaded streets around the country, drawing a bloody response from security forces, who opened fire with live ammunition in some cases.Despite the boycott and the unrest, the head of the National Electoral Council, Tibisay Lucena – one of 13 Maduro allies already hit by US sanctions – said there had been “extraordinary turnout” of more than eight million voters, 41.5 percent of the electorate.In a speech to hundreds of supporters in central Caracas, Maduro hailed it as a win.“We have a Constituent Assembly,” he said.“It is the biggest vote the revolution has ever scored in its 18-year history,” he said, referring to the year his late mentor, Hugo Chavez, came to power.There was blistering international condemnation of the vote, led by Washington which threatened further “strong and swift” sanctions on Maduro’s government.

[]

31/07/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/07/31/maduro-claims-vote-win-opposition-vows-protests/

Manila Bulletin

Go consoles Manila fire victims

After a gruelling week-long trip to Israel and Jordan, Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go went to Sta. Cruz in Manila shortly after his arrival to deliver aid to around 50 families hit by fire on Wednesday.“Nandirito po ako para magdala ng kaunting tulong mula sa gobyerno at mula sa mga kaibigan ko po na gustong tumulong. Kaunting tulong naman po, mga goods mula sa DOH rin naman po. May mga hygiene kit, may mga pagkain mula sa pribado, kaunting cash assistance ((I’m here to bring some assistance from the government and from my friends who are willing to help. There are some goods from the Department of Health like hygiene kits. There is food from the private sector and some cash assistance),” Go said in a media interview.Go learned of the Manila fire while he was out of the country. Authorities said the eight-hour fire started in a three-storey house in Mabolo Street. The fire started at 9:17 a.m. on September 5 and was declared under control at 5:26 p.m. the same day.Go said the fire victims can be relocated with the help of the National Housing Authority.The President’s top aide said he is willing to provide uniforms and food for students and employees who were affected by the fire.“Sa mga estudyante na kailangan ng uniporme papabilhan ko kaagad bukas. Pati iyong mga nagtratrabaho po nang hindi na sila mahirapan mag adjust (For the students who need uniforms, I will have them purchased tomorrow. Even for those who are working, so they won’t have a hard time adjusting),” Go said.From Sta. Cruz, Go went to Tangos, Navotas to visit 15 families who also lost their homes to a blaze that hit their neighborhood on September 5.He also brought assistance from the DoH, NHA, and the private group Friends of Bong Go.He told the fire victims that they can apply with the NHA for free housing.Go urged the Bureau of Fire Protection to strengthen its information campaign on fire prevention.He urged parents not to allow their children wo play with matches, candles or lighters since these could start a fire.

['The Manila Times']

2018-09-10 00:08:00+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/go-consoles-manila-fire-victims/439956/

Manila Times

Bulacan town mayor faces graft charges

once on Oct. 1-15, 2013, and the next on Oct. 16-31, 2013.Assistant Special Prosecutor III Jorge B. Espinal wrote in the charge sheets against Germar that his actions, which the prosecutor said are in violation of Section 3(e) of R.A. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, caused “undue injury to the government in the aforesaid amount.”His bail bond has been set at P60,000, with a P30,000 charge for each count of graft.

[]

29/07/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/07/29/bulacan-town-mayor-faces-graft-charges/

Manila Bulletin

Bus in Mindoro crash bought from junkshop

The owner of Dimple Star Transport bus firm on Wednesday revealed that the bus involved in a recent deadly crash in Mindoro Occidental had been bought from a junkshop.Aileen Lizada, a board member of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), said they were shocked to hear from owner Hilbert Napat during a hearing that most parts of the bus were only replaced to make the vehicle look like new.“Napat admitted that the unit was reassembled, the engine was reconditioned and the whole vehicle was painted after it was bought from a junkshop to look like a bran- new unit,” Lizada added.The LTFRB had issued a 30-day suspension against the entire fleet of Dimple Star after the bus (TY 708) fell into a ravine along the national highway in Sitio Yapang, Barangay Batong Buhay in Sablayan, Mindoro Occidental, on the night of March 20.The accident left 19 people dead and 21 injured.According to LTFRB chairman Martin Delgra, “such incidents are the very reason why we are pushing through with the modernization of public utility vehicles” so that no old and dilapidated units will bring trouble to commuters on the road.The suspension of Dimple Star will remain until the bus firm complies with all regulations set by the board, including road safety seminars and compulsory drug testing among its drivers, conductors and operators.President Rodrigo Duterte previously ordered the cancelation of Dimple Star’s franchise after inspecting the crash site in Sablayan town and visited the victims involved.Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista had also served a closure order to the bus firm’s terminal and ticketing office in Cubao in Quezon City on March 26 over lack of business permit and “failure to meet the standards of providing quality service to its passengers.”The LTFRB ordered another scheduled hearing on May 30 to further discuss Dimple Star’s case.

['Mary Gleefer F. Jalea']

2018-04-19 00:02:50+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/bus-in-mindoro-crash-bought-from-junkshop/393421/

Manila Times

Aquino support won’t sway voters–Serge Osmeña

Sen. Serge Osmeña III doubts that President Aquino’s endorsement will help his candidate in 2016, pointing out that presidential patronage in the past wasn’t of much help to the anointed.“Filipino voters are a different lot. They have an independent choice for President,” Osmeña told dzBB radio on Sunday.Malacañang’s endorsements in presidential elections in 1992, 1998, 2004 and 2010 had “almost no effect” on voters, said the senator, who has played key roles in presidential campaigns and national elections in the past as a political strategist.Osmeña noted that the late President Corazon Aquino endorsed Fidel Ramos for President in 1992. Before her endorsement, Ramos was leading surveys for two years but it was small compared to the then leading contender, Miriam Defensor-Santiago. Ramos won that election.“After Cory endorsed him, his lead remained the same. So, the endorsement almost had no effect,” Osmeña said.He also said that Ramos endorsed House Speaker Jose de Venecia in the 1998 presidential election, but De Venecia lost to Joseph Estrada. Before Ramos threw his support behind De Venecia, the then House Speaker got a 15-percent rating in the surveys, which he kept even after Ramos had endorsed him.“So the official endorsement has no net effect,” Osmeña said.Then there was also the endorsement given by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to her Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro in the 2010 election. Teodoro lost to his cousin, President Aquino.Filipino voters also do not believe in teams as they tend to split their votes for President and Vice President, Osmeña said.When Ramos was elected President, the opposition candidate, Joseph Estrada, won as Vice President.In 1998, Estrada won the presidency, but it was Arroyo on the other side who won the vice presidential race.In 2010, Aquino won, but his running mate Mar Roxas lost to oppositionist Jejomar Binay.“So there is a lot of proof that the voters split their votes,” Osmeña said.With Binay being pummeled by corruption allegations that have resulted in his gradual slide in preference surveys, more people are now joining the presidential derby, he said.“We will see two or three more candidates for president emerging,” he added.So far, only Binay has declared his presidential bid. Binay has also formed a search committee to find a running mate for him.Roxas has yet to declare his presidential bid but his party mates and even his own mother have said that he is running for President.Aquino is set to endorse his successor this month.RELATED STORIESJuana Change: Aquino 2016 endorsement ‘kiss of death’Aquino ratings dip to impact in 2016 polls

['Christine O. Avendaño']

2018-09-15 00:03:00+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/695135/aquino-support-wont-sway-voters-serge-osmena

Inquirer

SC staff among new judges in Metro

President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed 17 new judges to the Metropolitan Trial Courts (MeTC) of the cities of Manila, Makati, Mandaluyong, Pasay and Pasig.The list of appointees was contained in a transmittal letter of Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to then-Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno dated January 5, 2018, but was transmitted only on September 11, 2018 to the office of current Chief Justice Teresita Leonardo-de Castro.Topping the list of appointees were Judge Karla Funtila-Abugan of MeTC Branch 17 of Manila and Judge Catherine Manzano who was appointed MeTC Judge of Makati City Branch 126.Abugan and Manzano are the current chiefs of staff of SC associate justices Lucas Bersamin and Marvic Leonen, respectively.Also appointed to the Manila Court were Jose Cordero Jr. under Branch 11; Richelle Lou Boling Sanchez, Branch 29; and Grace Maria Theresa Bambi delos Reyes-Jurado, Branch 30.Appointed to the Makati Court were Judges Melinda Cielo Mendoza under MeTC Branch 125; Clemente M. Clemente, Branch 127; Maureen Rubio-Marquez, Branch 128; Alexius Tang, Branch 129; Lorelei Balansay-Tapia, Branch 130.In Mandaluyong City MeTC, appointed were judges Karyn Lee-Tribaco under Branch 100 and Earl Warren Castillo under Branch 101.In Pasig City MeTC, appointed were judges Fredelyne Addug-Sanchez, Branch 68; Jesusa Lapuz-Gaudiano, Branch 153; Emilio Gonzales 3rd, Branch 154; and Theresa Dizon, Branch 155.In Pasay City, the lone appointee was MeTC Branch 46 Judge Rechie Ramos-Malabanan.The appointees were nominated by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC), which is constitutionally mandated to screen and vet nominees to the President for vacant posts in the judiciary and the Offices of the Ombudsman and Deputy Ombudsman.The JBC is chaired by de Castro, with ex-officio members, Sen. Richard Gordon, and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Salvador Leachon and Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.

['Jomar Canlas']

2018-09-15 00:03:00+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/sc-staff-among-new-judges-in-metro/441608/

Manila Times

Duterte to host state visits of Brunei sultan, Indonesia president

Manila will play host this week not only to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit but also to Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei and Indonesian President Joko Widodo, both of whom are making state visits to the Philippines.“Preparations are now in full swing for all activities scheduled [this] week in Manila,” presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said on Sunday.Abella said the 30th Asean summit, to be held in the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City from April 26 to 29, was the first of two leaders-level meetings that the country would host as this year’s chair of Asean.President Duterte will chair the summit, which will be attended by the heads of state of the 10-member Asean.Before the Asean summit, Mr. Duterte will also host the state visits of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei on April 27 and of Indonesian President Joko Widodo on April 28.Malacañang earlier announced the suspension of work in the government sector in the cities of Pasay, Makati and Manila on April 27 and the suspension of work in the government and private sectors in Metro Manila on April 28.

['Christine O. Avendaño']

2016-11-27 20:47:56+00:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/891424/duterte-to-host-state-visits-of-brunei-sultan-indonesia-president

Inquirer

Poe files bill on road safety

Senator Grace Poe is pushing for the integration in the school curriculum driver’s education to effectively reduce road casualties and stop road accidents from replacing heart disease as the leading cause of death in the Philippines.Poe, who heads the public services committee in the Senate, recently filed Senate Bill 1231 or the proposed Road Safety and Comprehensive Driver’s Education Act which seeks the mandatory integration of basic road safety and comprehensive driver’s education in the enhanced basic education curriculum.The senator believes that inculcating good road safety habits and driver’s discipline among youths could help reduce accidents and road casualties.Under the measure, basic road safety shall be taught in the elementary level while comprehensive driver’s education shall be made part of the junior and senior high school and higher education curricula.In the explanatory note of her bill, Poe noted that from 2008 to 2013, road accidents is the fifth highest cause of mortality, accounting for 36,000 deaths for every 100,000 population.In 2012, road mishaps were the fourth leading cause of mortality in the Philippines. Health officials predict that road accidents could become the leading cause of deaths in the country by 2020, surpassing diseases of the heart and vascular system, malignant neoplasms, and pneumonia.“The statistics are extremely frustrating. Road accidents are the most preventable of all the causes of mortality as such are man-made and are within our control and prevention,” Poe said.The senator added that road accidents can be addressed simply by enforcing the law and promoting greater awareness on road safety.If enacted, SB 1231 will direct the Department of Education (DepEd), the chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education, Department of Transportation, Land Transportation Office (LTO), Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, and Metro Manila Development Authority to formulate and implement a basic road safety and comprehensive driver’s education subject for students in basic and higher education.The funds needed for the measure will be sourced from the budget of the DepEd under the General Appropriations Act.Jefferson Antiporda

['Jefferson Antiporda']

2016-11-27 20:47:56+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/poe-files-bill-road-safety/298740/

Manila Times

DOTC revises baggage handling rules due to ‘tanim-bala’

The Department of Transportation and Communications has revamped certain baggage handling procedures at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, which has made international news over an alleged bullet planting scam, a senior government official said.The issue has cast a cloud over the integrity of personnel from the Office Of Transportation Security.The alleged scheme involves airport security personnel planting bullets inside the bags of unsuspecting passengers, with the intention of detaining and extorting money from them later on.The scandal, also known as the “tanim bala” scam, has placed the spotlight on conditions at NAIA, the country’s main gateway, which in the past had been cited among the world’s worst airports by certain blog sites.It also comes at a time when the country has been moving to address congestion issues as it seeks to lure more foreign visitors.“We continue our investigation and info gathering to ensure any operation of tanim bala, if ever there is any, is addressed and halted,” Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Abaya said in a text message.In a meeting with Malacañang on Monday, Abaya said certain baggage handling procedures were modified “where only passengers handle them.”He added that the government has started installing closed circuit television cameras in the screening stations. He said larger signs warning passengers about carrying ammunition would likewise be installed.Abaya also downplayed the incidents.“We briefed the President on the statistics since 2012 and we’ve shown there hasn’t been any change in ammunition incidents (souvenirs/shells/necklaces/live ammo) until 2015,” Abaya said.He said some of the apprehensions stemmed from lapses by the passengers themselves.“There also was an OFW [overseas Filipino worker] whose mom placed a bullet in the bag of her daughter truly believing it is an amulet that will provide her protection,” Abaya said. “Another passenger borrowed a bag from a colonel and live ammo was left in the bag.” SFM

['Miguel R. Camus']

12/05/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/736622/dotc-revises-baggage-handling-rules-due-to-tanim-bala

Inquirer

Mysterious encounter with ‘telco man’

Jover Laurio, the person behind the popular Pinoy Ako Blog (PAB), was moved to a safehouse with a security detail on Wednesday night, following a suspicious incident involving an unidentified man who had gone to her house.Laurio—voted as one of Inquirer’s 2017 Filipinos of the Year—initially posted her concern on her Facebook page, after which she blogged about the incident in detail.On the morning of Jan. 31, Laurio recounted that she was upstairs in the apartment she was renting with her mother and was being interviewed on the phone for a radio show anchored by lawyers Jesus Falcis and Bruce Rivera, when a man came knocking at their gate.The man identified himself to her mother as being from a telecommunications company, and said that he wanted to check the mobile network’s signal in that area.But the man’s next questions raised suspicion about his real intention, Laurio said.“Does Laurio live in the house? For how long? How many other people live there? Is she married?” were some of the questions the man had asked Laurio’s mother.Before leaving, the man took photos of the apartment.Her mother had not asked for the man’s identification, said Laurio, who contacted the telco company to report the incident. She later received a call from the mobile network’s staff, who said there was no such assignment among their field technicians, and that these technicians don’t ask those kinds of questions.Profiling, liquidationLaurio told the Inquirer that though she had gotten used to online threats and bullying by her detractors, she felt apprehensive about the incident that she reported it to the police on the same day.A friend who works at the Commission on Human Rights later advised her to move to a new place.“That’s what we call ‘profiling.’ Next is liquidation,” the friend said of the incident.Her friends wasted no time moving Laurio to a temporary safehouse.Asked how she was doing, Laurio on Thursday said she was bored, but also glad that she could communicate with her mother by phone.“May konti pang takot (There’s still a bit of fear), not for myself, but for my family,” Laurio said on her blog. “May takot pero patuloy na lalaban para sa katotohanan at sa bayan (There’s fear but the fight continues for the truth and for country).”Laurio—whose PAB blog has some 150,000 followers and who has as many followers on Facebook—gained national attention when rabid supporters of President Duterte exposed her name, photos and personal details on social media, prompting trolls and Duterte’s propagandists to bully and threaten her.Against bashersShe has filed criminal and civil cases against some of these bashers.Laurio attracted more attention after a Duterte propagandist admonished BBC Southeast Asia correspondent Jonathan Head during the Asean Summit and complained bitterly about being ignored by BBC. The propagandist-blogger railed that BBC had chosen to interview “minor blogger” Laurio instead.A pool of editors voted Laurio and other voices against fake news as the Inquirer’s 2017 Filipinos of the Year.On Jan. 31, Laurio was among the resource persons invited to the Senate hearing on fake news.

['Pocholo Concepcion']

12/05/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/965728/mysterious-encounter-with-telco-man

Inquirer

Bloomberg warns of ‘epidemic of dishonesty’

Americans are facing an “epidemic of dishonesty” in Washington that’s more dangerous than terrorism or communism.That’s according to former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who warned in a commencement speech on Saturday at Texas’ Rice University that “an endless barrage of lies” and a trend toward “alternate realities” in national politics pose a dire threat to U.S. democracy.The 76-year-old billionaire, who flirted with an independent presidential run in 2016, did not call out any politicians by name.Although he derided Donald Trump as “a con” and a “dangerous demagogue” before his election, in an interview before the speech Bloomberg refused to comment specifically on the Republican president’s troubled history with the truth. Fact checkers have determined that Trump has made hundreds of false and misleading statements since entering the Oval Office.“This is bigger than any one person. It’s bigger than any one party,” he said in the interview.In the speech, Bloomberg evoked the legend of the nation’s first president, George Washington, who as a boy said he could not tell a lie when asked if he cut down a cherry tree.“How did we go from a president who could not tell a lie to politicians who cannot tell the truth?” Bloomberg asked Rice graduates and their families gathered in Houston.He blamed “extreme partisanship” for an unprecedented tolerance of dishonesty in U.S. politics. People are committed more to their political tribes than the truth, he said, suggesting that the nation is more divided than any time since the Civil War.“There is now more tolerance for dishonesty in politics than I have seen in my lifetime,” Bloomberg said. “The only thing more dangerous than dishonest politicians who have no respect for the law is a chorus of enablers who defend their every lie.”For example, he noted that Democrats spent much of the 1990s defending President Bill Clinton against charges of lying and personal immorality just as Republicans attacked the lack of ethics and honesty in the White House. Just the reverse is happening today, he said.He also warned that such deep levels of dishonesty could enable what he called “criminality.” Asked what specifically he was talking about, Bloomberg noted “lots of investigations” going on, but he declined to be more specific.Several Trump associates are facing criminal charges as part of a federal probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election. Three have already pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI. Federal investigators want to interview Trump himself, although the president’s legal team has resisted so far.“When elected officials speak as though they are above the truth, they will act as though they are above the law,” Bloomberg told Rice graduates. “And when we tolerate dishonesty, we get criminality. Sometimes, it’s in the form of corruption. Sometimes, it’s abuse of power. And sometimes, it’s both.”

[]

12/05/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/05/12/bloomberg-warns-of-epidemic-of-dishonesty/

Manila Bulletin

Angono holds Higantes Festival

The province’s grandest and most colorful event, the “Higantes Festival 2016”, is happening today, Sunday in this town known as the Art Capital of the Philippines.The office of Mayor Gerardo Calderon said more than 200 “giants”, are joining including the “higante” version of the country’s prominent personalities such as President Duterte, and other national figures.The parade will start outside SM Center Angono at 6 a.m. and will pass the major streets of the town before the higantes converged outside the town hall.Aside from the giant version of President Duterte, the public may also see for the first time the “higante” version of the country’s beauty queens, and other personalities that hit the headlines recently.The feast day of Saint Clement, November 23, has been declared a non-working holiday.A fluvial parade of boats will happen on November 23 following the 6 a.m. mass to be presided by Antipolo Bishop Francis de Leon.

[]

19/11/2016 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2016/11/19/angono-holds-higantes-festival/

Manila Bulletin

Sahiron follower nabbed in Sulu

The military arrested a rabid follower of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) leader Radullan Sahiron at the village of Buhanginan in Patikul, Sulu,Thursday.Armed Forces of the Philippines, Western Mindanao Command (AFP-WestMinCom) Spokesman Army Capt. Jo-Ann Petinglay identified the ASG member as Milham Saham, 24 and a resident of Barangay Bangkal, Patikul, Sulu.Petinglay said Saham was intercepted by elements of the 45th Infantry Battalion in Barangay Buhanginan, Patikul, Sulu at 6p.m., September 7.“Troops conducted a checkpoint following reports on the alleged movement of the Abu Sayyaf in the area, resulting in the arrest of Abu Sayyaf member Saham,” said Joint Task Force Sulu Commander Brig. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana.Seized from Saham were several components of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), including ammunition nitrate fuel with detonating cord, electrical wires, electrical tapes, and a circuit assembly, according to Sobejana.Saham was positively identified by informants as an ASG member under Sahiron, and was previously associated with the group of late sub-leaders Hairulla Asbang and Alhabsy Misaya, Sobejana added.The arrested bandit was also linked to the group of sub-leader Alden Bagadi, alias Sayning, who is his cousin, Sobejana said.Saham is known as an Abu Sayyaf member to residents in Barangays Buhanginan and Kaunayan. Patikul, Sulu.

[]

08/09/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/09/08/sahiron-follower-nabbed-in-sulu/

Manila Bulletin

Año promises disciplined PNP

Interior and Local Government officer in charge Eduardo Año on Tuesday said his leadership of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) would make the Philippine National Police (PNP) a disciplined force so it could wage a relentless war on drugs, crime and corruption.Speaking to reporters after Tuesday’s turnover rites at the DILG, where he took over the post from Catalino Cuy, Año said any change in the image of the PNP would not merely be “cosmetic.”“I spoke with PNP chief (Ronald) Dela Rosa and we agreed that the focus would be to make sure that we will make a disciplined PNP and we will improve the image of the PNP, not just the cosmetic but also the service,” he said in Filipino.Changing imageHe explained that values formation would be the focal point in changing the image of the country’s police force.The PNP, he said, had chalked up many accomplishments, particularly the arrest of persons wanted for crimes.He lamented that these “thousands” of accomplishments had not been highlighted by the media.“What is highlighted are the few policemen who violated the rules of engagements and (incidents) where there were casualties caught in the crossfire,” he said.In pursuing a change in the PNP’s image, Año said all aspects of recruitment and training, including values formation, would be reviewed.Acting secretaryAño retired as chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in October last year, and President Duterte then appointed him DILG undersecretary.By law Año could not assume the post of secretary until a year after his retirement.Last week, Mr. Duterte appointed him as officer in charge, or acting secretary, without the official title.Año said his military experience might help influence personnel in the armed services, including the PNP and the other agencies under DILG supervision—Bureau of Jail Management and Penology and Bureau of Fire Protection.In his speech at the turnover rites, Año said: “Under my watch, the DILG will relentlessly and resolutely wage a campaign to rid the country of illegal drugs, criminality, and corruption. The threats of communism and violent extremism will also be met head-on.”Año warned local civilian and police officials involved with crime groups that they would be “held accountable and will be dealt with uncompromisingly for violating our laws.”

['Jeannette I. Andrade']

03/02/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/959175/ano-promises-disciplined-pnp

Inquirer

Philrem to return P10M to Bangladesh

The foreign exchange remittance company that converted into pesos the $81 million stolen from the Bangladesh central bank Thursday apologized to the ambassador of the impoverished South Asian nation and offered to return all proceeds it made from the transaction.Speaking before the Senate blue ribbon committee, Philrem Services Inc. president Salud Bautista said her firm would issue a check in the name of the government of Bangladesh representing her company’s earnings from the deal.“We are sorry,” Bautista said, adding Philrem did not know the funds were stolen from Bangladesh.She said the firm would immediately write a check for P10,474,654 and turn it over to Bangladeshi representatives.Earlier during the Senate hearing, Maia Deguito, branch manager of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) which is at the center of the money-laundering scandal, said Kim Wong had referred to her the supposed holders of the four fictitious accounts, who received part of the money stolen from Bangladesh Bank.Deguito also linked RCBC president/CEO Lorenzo Tan to Wong.Wong is among those being investigated by the Senate in the laundering of $81 million but he skipped the hearing because his lawyer said he had been out of the country since March 4 for medical treatment.‘Referred accounts’After she testified in a closed-door session, Deguito answered some of the questions from senators during the resumption of the public hearing.Asked by Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile how the four bank accounts were created at the RCBC branch on Jupiter Street in Makati City, Dequito said the four were “referred accounts.”She described Wong as a friend of Tan.Deguito said she has known Wong for six years now, having met him when she was then working with Export Bank in 2009 “through client friends.”Deguito’s backer“He (Wong) wanted to help me in the marketing budget for the bank,” she said in reply to the question why Wong referred the account holders to him.Deguito said she met Wong through “common client friends” and identified Jason Go as one of them.Tan said Wong was buying cars from Go, the car dealer who earlier was identified at the hearing as the one who recommended Deguito to RCBC.RCBC lawyer Macel Fernandez-Estavillo said Go was a “valued client of the bank.”“I met Wong through Jason Go. Jason Go has been helping me in getting clients for whatever bank I am assigned,” Deguito said.Go was Deguito’s client in Export Bank.Deguito said Wong became a client of hers when she was working for East West Bank.Asked about his association with Wong after Deguito claimed that the RCBC president was a friend of Wong, Tan said Deguito “seems to know him better.”“I have no business (with him),” Tan said, noting that he met Wong in 2002 because he was a restaurant owner. But Tan said he had not seen Wong in 12 or 14 years.Tan repeated he also knew Go.Thursday ClubAsked whether he was a member of the so-called Thursday Club that included Go and Wong, Tan said he was not part of the group.On questioning by the blue ribbon committee chair, Sen. Teofisto Guingona III, Deguito said she attended the birthday party of Go in the last quarter of 2014 and in attendance were Tan and Wong, among others.“Wong and Tan walked together and Mr. Tan told me to take care of that guy (Wong),” Deguito said.Deguito also said Tan invited her to join RCBC when she resigned from East West Bank in 2013.Tan said he did not remember attending Go’s birthday party as Deguito had said.“I never invited her to join (RCBC) …. She is portraying herself as someone special and that I brought her in. That did not happen,” Tan said of Deguito, this time on her claim he invited her to join the bank.Wong to return to PHWong will return to the Philippines to appear before the Senate blue ribbon committee, according to his lawyer.“In the letter, he expressed willingness to appear before the committee on March 20 onwards,” Wong’s lawyer Macel Fernandez told the committee.Fernandez said his client, a Filipino citizen, would address the allegations against him when he appears before the committee.Wong left the country on March 4 to undergo a medical treatment in Singapore, his lawyer said.Guingona set the next hearing on March 29 at 1:30 p.m.Asked if Wong would be available at such time, Fernandez said: “He will be available but it depends on the outcome of the medical treatment.”

['Christine O. Avendaño', 'Daxim L. Lucas', 'Niña P. Calleja']

03/02/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/774809/philrem-to-return-p10m-to-bangladesh

Inquirer

Naia outage causes chaos

It was due to one broken generator, said an airport manager, but a senatorial candidate called the incident a “national shame.”A five-hour power outage at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 over the weekend canceled 82 domestic flights and delayed 79 international and local flights as of 3 p.m. on Sunday, affecting more than 15,000 passengers.Affected passengers and netizens said the incident once again highlighted the incompetence of the airport management and Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya.Others wondered why Naia 3 didn’t have an uninterruptible power supply.Some even doubted the airport’s capacity to withstand terrorist attacks following the Brussels bombings. Netizen @raymtweets said “a power outage can cripple Naia … what if it were something worse? Unbelievable.”“It took a terrorist attack to shut down Brussels airport. In Manila’s Naia Terminal 3, it took a … Uhhhh … A random power outage,” said Chiki (@chikinonymous).The blackout hit Terminal 3, which services mostly domestic flights, late on Saturday and power was not restored until early on Sunday.Exhausted, long queuesExhausted passengers sprawled on the floor as check-in counters and luggage carousels shut down. Long queues formed outside the terminal as entrances were closed until power was restored.Terminal 3 handles an average of 350 domestic and international flights daily, according to data from the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). It is one of four terminals in a complex that was once dubbed by the travel website Guide to Sleeping in Airports as the world’s worst due to leaking toilets and creaking facilities.Naia 3 manager Octavio Lina said the terminal’s electrical system suffered problems when power supplied by a Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) substation serving the area in Pasay City tripped at around 8:45 p.m. on Saturday.Lina said that even when power was restored less than a minute after, for most of the areas serviced by the Meralco substation, electricity still had failed to kick in at the Naia.Genset brokenWhat prolonged the power outage, he pointed out, was the failure of one generator set to work. “We have 10 generators at the terminal and one of them, which was supposed to provide electricity to the main building, did not work,” he told the Inquirer.The Naia 3 manager said the gates of the main building were immediately closed and no one was allowed entry because of the power outage. “We had to close the gates and prohibit entry because none of the X-ray security screening machines had power,” Lina said, explaining that the move was meant to fully secure the facility.The closure resulted in heavy passenger congestion at the terminal.Cebu Pacific Air said it canceled 78 domestic flights due to the power outage, affecting nearly 14,000 passengers. These flights were scheduled between 8:30 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday.Power at the terminal was fully restored around 2 a.m. on Sunday.Lost belongingsLuis Arevalo and Jc Aala tagged Naia’s official Twitter account to complain about lost belongings, adding that the airport management is an embarrassment for Filipinos.Others were forced to buy new plane tickets after their flights were canceled, like what happened to Louise Pasadilla’s father.Ian Sta. Maria’s father wasn’t able to fly home from Cagayan de Oro City after suffering the same delay.Netizens Ram Lopez-Vito Bucoy and George M. Macua said they were made to pay P1,620 for travel tax and an additional P500 for airport fee (for international flights) only to be given such a poor service.@HotCoco described the incident as “nakakagalit,” especially after paying the fees.Raymond Reteracion asked asked why there was an absence of back-up supply when there are fees and budget to support services.IncompetentAbaya was not spared criticism. Arvin Zurc finds the outage “ridiculous,” adding that the situation only “shows the incompetence of the airport management and the DOTC Sec.”Cesar Chavez (@sarchavez) tweets that Abaya is “the worst and most incompetent DOTC secretary.”A parody account of broadcaster Luchi Cruz-Valdez flooded the timeline with tirades for Abaya, demanding in all caps that the secretary do his job.“Apparently, Naia has around 10 Power Generators. Drained nga lang, according to Jun Abaya. Edi *applause emojis*,” the account added.Before the incident, passengers had been complaining about poor maintenance of the terminal, citing collapsed floors, dilapidated facilities and leaks.Two lawmakers from Metro Manila called for heads to roll after the power outage. One of them even branded the incident at the country’s main airport a national shame.Valenzuela Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian said Abaya and Manila International Airport Authority general manager Jose Angel Honrado should be sacked for “sleeping on their jobs.”“This is no longer a laughing matter,” said Gatchalian, a member of Sen. Grace Poe’s senatorial ticket and of the Nationalist People’s Coalition.ShamefulAnother senatorial candidate on Poe’s team, Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo, said the incident was a national shame, expressing disbelief at what happened at Naia 3.“I am appalled by the fact that Naia 3 had no contingency or back-up plan for such an event,” he said in a separate statement.“It has shown the highest level of incompetence and lack of foresight on the part of the DOTC, which had all but declared it would take a direct hand in running our airports. It’s shameful to say the least,” said Romulo, a member of the Liberal Party.Romulo said the incident firmed up his resolve to push for the enactment of an airline passenger bill of rights to impose penalties not only on airlines but also on responsible government agencies.READ: Poe camp: Naia-3 power outage a national embarrassmentThe DOTC noted that there was a maintenance operation at the airport terminal when a trip occurred at the Meralco main line.Lina assured the public that the Naia 3 management was looking into why power supplied to the airport by Meralco failed to kick in and why its generator set connected to the passenger side, considered a critical part of the terminal, failed to work.“Our power lines and electrical facilities are being checked. I am meeting with Meralco and our technical personnel tomorrow (Monday) to determine what needs to be done to prevent this from happening again,” he told the Inquirer.Meralco said a transmission line tripped briefly but was restored in minutes, suggesting that the problem could be with the airport’s systems.The four Naia terminals were designed for 17 million passengers annually, but overuse has made the airport notorious for flight delays.Plans to build a new airport outside Manila have not materialized under President Aquino. An excruciatingly slow infrastructure overhaul has led to chronic commuter train breakdowns and traffic jams.ApologyThe Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) issued an apology to the public. The Miaa said “[m]easures are now being worked out to make sure that a power outage does not occur again in the future.”In a statement, Cebu Pacific said, “We sincerely hope for our guests’ understanding, as this situation is beyond our control.”The budget airline gave affected passengers the option of a full refund or a rebooking within a month of the departure date.Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) said some of its flights were canceled or delayed but could not immediately say how many. It said it was waiving rebooking fees and offering refunds to passengers affected by the power outage.The passengers have the option to refund or rebook flights without charges within 30 days from their originally scheduled flight date, according to PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna. With reports from DJ Yap and AFPRELATED STORIESPower restored at Naia-3 after 5-hour outageCebu Pacific: 80 flights cancelled due to Naia 3 power outage

['Jeannette I. Andrade', 'Karl Angelica Ocampo']

03/02/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/777638/naia-outage-causes-chaos

Inquirer

Shocking, worrying, Robredo says of naked inmates

“Shocking and worrying” was how Vice President Leni Robredo described the treatment of inmates at the Cebu provincial jail, who were forced to strip down and paraded before cameras during a drug raid in the facility.Robredo said the incident was a clear violation of the human rights of the prisoners, whose pictures were posted on social media, triggering an uproar.“There are many human rights issues at play here. We have very specific laws including the Anti-Torture Act that says government officials have no right to force inmates in prison to undergo cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment that would demean their humanity,” she said.The pictures released by provincial officials have sparked accusations of human rights abuse, including some comments on Twitter saying they are reminiscent of wartime concentration camps.Local government officials have defended the mass stripping of the inmates, with one provincial officer saying it’s standard protocol during drug raids. According to news reports, the raid netted several packets of “shabu” (methamphetamine hydrochloride) and marijuana leaves, as well as knives and mobile phones.In an interview with Cebu media on Friday, a transcript of which was sent to Manila reporters, Robredo said it was important to question the actions of the authorities involved.“There are many ways to achieve what they want to achieve—whether they’re searching for contraband or illegal drugs—but not to the extent that they harm or humiliate the inmates of the Cebu City jail,” she said.“I hope this will not be repeated,” Robredo said.But President Duterte’s chief legal counsel said he supported the mass strip search, although he was against the public exposure of naked bodies.“For me, if we’re talking about security, it probably has to be done,” Salvador Panelo said over the government-owned Radyo ng Bayan.“If it’s just done inside the prison, and it’s only they who see it, I think that could be done for the security process,” he added.He said he had listened to the explanation of the jail superintendent that if the inmates were not stripped naked and one of them kept a bladed weapon and harmed someone, there could be a riot.“They are correct,” he said, defending the move.But he said the authorities should have been careful about exposing to the public the photos of the naked bodies of the prisoners as that would violate their privacy.

['Dj Yap', 'Leila B. Salaverria']

03/02/2017 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/877518/shocking-worrying-robredo-says-of-naked-inmates

Inquirer

In New York refugee haven, new anxiety in age of Trump

in line with other upstate cities but above the national rate. The streets are dotted with empty storefronts and ramshackle homes. And the school system last year settled lawsuits that accused it of steering refugee students into inferior education programs.Still, Selimovic considers Utica a cultural oasis where friends and family can go to a cafe and talk politics in Bosnian. Alawsaj, who wears a hajib, said the city has always made her feel welcome.The mayor loves the cosmopolitan culture and how Bosnians have built up Utica’s east side by rehabbing old homes.“I would love to have the president come to Utica, New York, to see what it’s all about and how beneficial it’s been as a melting pot and blending them into the fiber of America,” Palmieri said.The refugees work in dozens of businesses, including nursing homes and local manufacturers. At least one major employer has taken notice of President Donald Trump’s order.Chobani yogurt founder Hamdi Ulukaya, who employs about 300 refugees among the 1,000 workers at a plant south of Utica, said the company will assist any affected employees and family members and “have their backs every day and every step of the way,” according to an in-house letter obtained by The Associated Press.Trump’s order suspends the admission of nearly all refugees for 120 days and bars travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries for 90 days.The move prompted Mowlid Hussein, a Somali Bantu, to cancel travel plans to see his two children from a previous marriage in Kenya. He is upset the order will delay efforts to bring them here.“Imagine your kid is away from you. You don’t have enough sleep at night. … And the order comes: They cannot come anymore until four months,” he said. “What can we do? How did this happen?”

[]

03/02/2017 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/02/03/in-new-york-refugee-haven-new-anxiety-in-age-of-trump/

Manila Bulletin

52 NPA rebels surrendered in Sept– military

Fifty-two members of the communist New People’s Army (NPA) surrendered to government forces in September, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Sunday.The latest to surrender, according to the military’s Western Command (WesCom), were four rebels based in Palawan.The four surrenderers were identified by WesCom spokeswoman Capt. Cheryl Tindog as Jeffrey Orit Sampaca alias Ka Ruban/Dante, 25; Henry Poyang Minduk alias Ka Daniel, 18; Germalyn Batuan Pitogo alias Gengen, 16; and Analy Pitogo Ambuan alias Ansa, 19.They brought with them 12 firearms.Earlier, on September 27, Col. Edgard Arevalo, AFP public affairs chief, said seven NPA members surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 102nd Infantry Brigade in Barangay Sanito, Ipil town, in Zamboanga Sibugay in southern Mindanao.Arevalo said the communist fighters turned over two AK47 rifles and a caliber .45 Remington.In Sultan Kudarat, also in Mindanao, nine NPA fighters who surrendered to the 33rd Infantry Battalion brought along with them six improvised explosive devices.“It is apparent through the statement of those who surrendered that their comrades are now experiencing hardships within their organization, and they are willing to avail of the opportunities being offered by the government to former NPA rebels,” Arevalo said in a statement.He added that the military is expecting more NPA guerrillas to surrender in the coming days.Arevalo said the surrender of the 52 rebels are “indicative of the dwindling” of the NPA organization.He added that the government will be offering immediate financial and livelihood assistance to the former NPA members under the Comprehensive Local Integration Program.The military has assured that the former communist fighters will be given seed capital for their livelihood “to help them go back to mainstream communities.”Despite the surrender of the 52 NPA rebels, Arevalo said, military operations against the NPA across the country will continue.There have been 566 communist rebels “neutralized” since the cancelation of peace talks between the communists and the government on February 4.

['The Manila Times']

2017-10-01 20:20:59+00:00

https://www.manilatimes.net/52-npa-rebels-surrendered-sept-military/354008/

Manila Times

Bishops urge police, military: Stop the killings

Catholic bishops on Sunday led thousands of Church followers in calling for an end to killings in President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs as they urged the police and the military to stop the violence.The killing of three teenagers in August triggered rare public protests against Mr. Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs, with rights groups accusing him of committing crimes against humanity in a crackdown that has claimed thousands of lives.The Catholic Church, which counts 80 percent of Filipinos as followers, has been one of the leading critics of the war on drugs and has launched campaigns to stop the killings, including 40 days of mourning for the victims of the war on drugs, a period marked by nightly prayers and tolling of church bells that ended on Sunday and was replaced by a 33-day campaign called “Heal Our Land.”The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) organized a Mass at Our Lady of Edsa Shrine and procession to the People Power Monument carrying the image of Our Lady of Fatima along the historic highway where a bloodless popular revolt ended the iron-fist rule of dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986.‘Peace to you’About 3,000 people — including opposition lawmakers, student and religious groups — joined the event, according to police.Organizers said 20,000 people attended the event.They carried candles and placards reading, “Stop the killings. Start the healing.”“Peace to you in the Armed Forces and the police. Stop the violence and uphold the law,” Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, president of the CBCP, said in his homily at the Mass.“If we do not stop the killings, there will be a punishment for a nation that kills its own people,” Villegas said.Malacañang said it was one with the Church leaders and followers in urging and calling for healing.Acting presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the Duterte administration “will never” tolerate extrajudicial killings in its campaign against illegal drugs and that it would allow “constructive dissent.”“We reiterate that this administration does not—and will never—condone extrajudicial and vigilante killings,” Roque said in a statement.Investigation going onHe said law enforcement agencies were investigating 2,243 killings with alleged “drug-related motives.”“As of end-September, and the President himself made a clear stance that any violation committed by the police during operations would be dealt with accordingly,” Roque said.Critics say that Mr. Duterte’s frequent public pronouncements on the drug war have been direct incitements to kill.Villegas said the killings tested the nation and cited the case of 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos, who was shot dead by police as he pleaded for his life in Caloocan City in August.The killing of Delos Santos was followed two days later by the killings of 19-year-old Carl Angelo Arnaiz and his friend, Reynaldo de Guzman, 14, sparking widespread public anger that pulled down Mr. Duterte’s poll ratings.De Lima statementDetained Sen. Leila de Lima also issued a statement, urging Filipinos to revive the spirit of Edsa and to start the country’s healing from the “wound” opened by Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs.De Lima said the country could start the healing by understanding what caused the wound, which she stressed was the “war on drugs by the Duterte regime.”

['Philippine Daily Inquirer']

2017-02-01 12:55:21+08:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/943216/bishops-urge-police-military-stop-the-killings

Inquirer

‘Don’t let your guard down,’ federal officials tell Hawaii

‘the impacts of which we aren’t prepared to say at this time,” Alexander said.Major flooding could damage 3,000 structures and cost more than $1 billion in repairs, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser newspaper reported, citing Corps estimates.Not everyone feared the storm.Swimmers and surfers ignored warnings from authorities and plunged into powerful waves at Oahu’s famed Waikiki Beach, which was closed.Emergency officials said repeatedly over loudspeakers: “Please get out of the water! It’s very dangerous!” Honolulu’s mayor, Kirk Caldwell, pleaded with tourists that they were putting themselves in danger as the storm churned closer.Crystal Bowden, a tourist from California, watched powerful waves crash against cliffs on Oahu’s southeast coast.“I came in to visit, got here just in time for the hurricane,” Bowden said. “We’re kind of excited.”The American Red Cross said more than 1,100 people were staying in shelters, mostly in Oahu. And while the number was down from earlier reports of approximately 2,000 people in shelters, officials said Saturday that the figure shows that a lot of people are still displaced.The central Pacific gets fewer hurricanes than other regions, with about only four or five named storms a year. Hawaii rarely gets hit. The last major storm to hit was Iniki in 1992. Others have come close in recent years.

[]

25/08/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/08/25/dont-let-your-guard-down-federal-officials-tell-hawaii/

Manila Bulletin

Labor: Dole order won’t stop ‘endo’

Workers’ groups on Friday questioned the labor department’s new order banning labor-only contracting, charging that it has failed to stop the unfair practice of contractualization.The Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research pointed out that the Department of Labor and Employment’s (Dole) new rules did not heed demands to end the practice of hiring workers and letting them go before they reach six months at work, which would automatically make them regular employees entitled to full benefits under the law.Department Order (DO) No. 174 “still encourages short-term contracts and violate job security in the guise of legal contractualization,” said Rochelle Poras, the institute’s executive director.“The so-called win-win solution does not ban but further legitimizes contractualization. That is very far from the workers’ demand to repeal all orders and policies that allow labor contractualization,” Poras said.The statement came a day after workers’ groups trooped to Intramuros to protest the labor department’s order Thursday. The order, signed by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, banned labor-only contracting, strictly regulated lawful contractual arrangements and prohibited “endo” or the end of contract scheme.But labor groups Kilusang Mayo Uno and the Partido Manggagawa protested the order as “pro-contractualization.”The labor research center also criticized Bello’s excuse that only Congress can completely ban contractualization.Regularization“President Duterte had marching orders to end contractualization. Bello’s DO 174 simply exposes that the administration does not want to ban contractualization in favor of big capitalists,” she said.Poras reiterated the group’s appeal to junk any order promoting contractual work arrangements, stressing that workers want to ban all forms of contractualization. She said she would be seeking a legislative inquiry on DO 174 when Congress resumes its session in May.“What we want… is the regularization of workers and the passing of a national minimum wage,” she said.The Partido Manggagawa agreed, noting that the DO 174 only reiterated prohibitions already spelled out in the old Department Order 18-A which it was meant to supersede.“The labor secretary is vested by the Labor Code with the power to prohibit or restrict labor contracting. Why does Bello not want to exercise this authority to prohibit?” the group’s spokesperson Wilson Fortaleza asked.Fortaleza argued that the new order directly contradicted President Duterte’s promise to end contractualization and agency hiring. He said that contractualization of workers would continue.“As lifetime agency employees, the best workers can hope for is a minimum wage while principal employers reap the fruits of labor productivity,” he said.Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) secretary general Jerome Adonis agreed, noting that the signing of the new rules only proved that President Duterte’s promise was “mere lip service.”“Duterte only earned the ire of Filipino workers over his failed promises and continued implementation of antiworker policies,” Adonis said.The KMU warned that the Duterte administration faced bigger workers’ protests against its failed promise to end contractualization.Major stepBut Malacañang on Friday ignored workers’ protest that argued that the watered down directive would not completely remedy job insecurity.Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the labor department’s order was “a fulfillment of the campaign promise of the President.”“This is a major step in upholding and protecting the labor rights of our great Filipino workers,” Abella said in a statement.“We guarantee the proper implementation of this Department Order by our labor officials and expect the full cooperation from the employers,” he said.He said that workers should be allowed to enjoy the fruits of their labor, even as “business investments must be encouraged to grow and prosper.”

['Julie M. Aurelio', 'Tarra Quismundo']

24/07/2018 0:00

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/881728/labor-dole-order-wont-stop-endo

Inquirer

TESDA-9 to offer skills training for ‘standbys’

The Technical Skills and Development Authority (TESDA) will soon offer skills training intended for “istambays” or “standbys” here in Region 9.Efren Piñol, newly-installed TESDA regional director, on Tuesday said they are just waiting for the guidelines for the implementation of the program.Piñol said TESDA Secretary-General Guiling Mamondiong has instructed all TESDA regional directors to prioritize the implementation of the program in their respective areas. He said jobless residents will be trained and given the livelihood starter kits to enable them to be either employed or self-employed and earn a living.He said among the skills training they could avail of include metal arch welding, plumbing, baking, housekeeping, caregiving, carpentry, masonry and others.“Maganda mag-tambay, pero mas maganda pag may trabaho tayo at may pera sa bulsa (It’s nice to hang around, but is nicer to have job and money in the pocket),” he said.Piñol assumed as the new TESDA regional director on Monday, replacing Engr. Lorenzo Macapili, who was reassigned to Region 11.Piñol was the former mayor of Magpet, North Cotabato and the younger brother of Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol. He served as the TESDA regional director in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) before he was assigned in the area.

[]

24/07/2018 0:00

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/07/24/tesda-9-to-offer-skills-training-for-standbys/

Manila Bulletin