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‘PH shrimp farming needs boost’ | ‘Thailand and Philippines are working closely on boosting local shrimp farming to help meet growing global demand, Thai Ambassador Thanatip Upatising said here during the opening of the 11th National Shrimp Congress at the SMX Convention Center.Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol, who graced the event, turned over a R20-million loan package to farmers from southern Negros.Upatising said that it is time for the Philippines to boost its shrimp production because it has a long shoreline, adding that it will not just be good for the country but for the neighboring Southeast Asian countries as well.“This is something we want to bring you back. Thailand is not a competitor because we are in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations),” he said, referring to the shrimp production as part of the initiatives to address food security in the region.“If it’s good for the Philippines, it will also be good for Thailand,” Upatising added.Thailand is one of the biggest exporters of shrimp in the region.It has exported 150,000 metric tons so far this year.He also said that during 1980s, the Philippines was the top exporter of shrimp and the government should revive it by giving the farmers more technological assistance.Upatising said technology and assistance from the government must be provided to these shrimp growers, as well as letting more private investments come in to give farmers more benefits.“As you can see, the Philippine industry is controlled only by small groups and players (investors). We need to let more people come in to have a fair market competition,” he said, adding that it would be beneficial to the farmers as the private sector will give them everything they needed to boost their production.He said that if the government cannot extend assistance to all sectors, the private sector could step in.The Thai ambassador likewise expressed that shrimp diseases like white spot syndrome have affected the industry in terms of production. | [] | 17/11/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/11/17/ph-shrimp-farming-needs-boost/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Newsflash: Filipinos are choosing LEGISLATORS in the coming 2019 elections | That’s right. Congress, after all, is a government branch whose primary role in government is to craft laws. As such, the important question Filipinos need to ask of their candidates in the coming 2019 elections is this:What is your legislative agenda?And that is the easy bit. The harder follow-up to this question (assuming the candidate or party can cough up a coherent response) is this:How does this legislative agenda fit within the framework of your long-term strategic vision?An excellent legislative agenda worth its legislator’s salt, after all, would naturally emerge if one has a long-term vision of what the Philippines might look like, say, five or ten years from now. To get to that five- to ten-year vision requires, of course, a means and a roadmap. The roadmap would be the strategy, and the key milestones within that roadmap would be legislative achievements. Executing the vision would then involve traversing said road and passing each milestone.In that regard, it is easy to see how simply slinging mud at one another, playing the Victim Card, engaging in necropolitical “activism”, and virtue signalling for the cameras will neither crystallise such a vision nor get anyone anywhere near the end of that strategic pathway. Unfortunately for Filipinos, they are stuck with an Opposition that focuses all of its efforts on exactly those unproductive endeavours. This is why it is important that the Opposition ditch the Liberal Party (a.k.a. the Yellowtards) where much of this retarded thinking originates. Only this way will the more important job of defining a vision and crafting a legislative agenda consistent with it become a true priority.Nonetheless, Filipinos need to apply a critical mind when deciding who to vote for in the coming elections. In the Philippines, unfortunately, personalities are pitched to voters much the same way a bar of soap is marketed. It’s all in the branding. Nebulous notions like “disente” and “dissent” as well as various liberalist concepts like feminism and “human rights” are thrown into a cauldron of clichés out of which are produced the campaign collateral that then gets parroted over mainstream media ad nauseum by candidates and supporters alike.Filipinos need to recalibrate the way they consume media, evaluate online content, and understand what is coming out of politicians’ mouths to make themselves immune from these quaint and obsolete mind tricks. More importantly, they need to learn to look past mere platitudes and demand that assertions and claims made by politicians and “influencers” be based on really clear and well-defined terms. For example, a claim to wage a “war on fake news” cannot simply be taken at face value. It is a mere motherhood statement that, to true stakeholders in the wellbeing of the nation, are all essentially meaningless.It could start by habitually asking two simple questions:What do you mean by that?So what?Thus, when a politician or “influencer” promises to mount, say, a “war on fake news”, ask the above two questions and watch them squirm.It does not take much to apply an intelligent mind to one’s duty to contribute to democratic exercises like elections. Often it is just a simple matter of asking the right questions and not simply lapping up and swallowing whole whatever verbage polticians and “influencers” issue without even the least bit of a chew. | ['Oratio Imperata'] | 2018-05-24 04:21:42+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2018/05/newsflash-filipinos-are-choosing-legislators-in-the-coming-2019-elections/#comments | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
PAYBACK TIME FOR U.S. REPUBLICAN LEGISLATORS | The U.S. government shutdown has ended, but the damage to the economy has been done.The ratings agency S&P has cut the annualized U.S. growth rate closer to 2% from 3%, saying that the shutdown has taken $24 billion out of the U.S. economy. The agency also cut 0.6% off of the yearly fourth quarter GDP growth.Upon the recommendation of his top financial advisers, President Barack Obama issued an Executive Order that would restitute what has been lost in the economy because of this nonsensical shutdown strategy orchestrated by the Republican and Tea Party leaders.The EO mandates that the Republican legislators pay back the $24 billion lost because of the two-week shutdown. Each of the 46 Republicans in the Senate and the 232 Republicans in the House of Representatives has been asked to pay the U.S. government $73 million. The deadline for the restitution is November 1, 2013. The Obama administration has denied requests from the Republican legislators for an installment plan.The Adobo Chronicles has learned that the country’s largest banks have offered the legislators unsecured personal loans to enable them to meet their obligations under the EO. The banks, however, are charging the legislators enormous interest rates ranging from 24.9% to 36.8 %. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 17/10/2016 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2013/10/17/payback-time-for-u-s-republican-legislators/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
MUST WATCH: 7 Months Pregnant Woman Arrested By NBI After Being Caught In The Act Of Using Illegal Drugs! | A pregnant woman named Alma Castañeda was caught in the act of using illegal drugs by the authority of National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in the held anti-drug operation at Pasig City.Woman was caught using drugs with her husband, Marcos Castañeda when the NBI came. 5 sachets of suspected shabu and other drug paraphernalias was acquired by the authorities.They were also accused that they let their customers molest their daughter every after they use drugs which the two denied. Mrs. Castañeda also said that they were not pushers of illegal drugs but they were just users instead. | [] | 2016-03-30 03:13:06+00:00 | http://www.pilipinasonlineupdates.com/2016/09/must-watch-7-months-pregnant-woman.html | Pilipinas Online Updates | Suspicious |
Comelec sets P695M for barangay, SK poll materials | THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) has earmarked P695 million for the printing and delivery of election forms and ballot boxes for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections later this year.Suppliers are being invited to bid for three separate contracts to cover the logistical preparations for the village polls to be conducted using the old manual voting and counting method on Oct. 31.These contracts involve the printing and delivery of envelopes for the voting and counting materials worth P21.5 million; the printing and delivery of election forms worth P31.3 million; and the supply and delivery of ballot boxes worth P642.1 million.The bid invitations indicated that the contracts also include envelopes to be used for official ballots, election returns, minutes of voting and for the ballot box keys; election forms and ballot boxes.Interested suppliers are required to pay nonrefundable fees ranging from P5,000 to P75,000 in order to participate in the bidding.The Comelec will hold a prebid conference on July 11 at 10 a.m. at the Palacio del Gobernador building, while the pre-bid conferences for the two other contracts are on July 13.The submission of bids for the ballot boxes contract is set for July 25 at 9 a.m. at the Comelec’s bids and awards secretariat office.The deadline for the envelopes and election forms contracts is on July 27 at 9 a.m. at the same venue.The barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections will come five months after this year’s general elections in May.‘Election fatigue’Comelec Chair Andres Bautista had wanted to postpone the October elections, citing election fatigue after the intensive automated polls in May.He also faces the possibility of running the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections sans three election commissioners who said they would boycott the elections.Commissioners Rowena Guanzon, Christian Robert Lim and Luie Guia expressed their intention not to participate in the elections in order to focus on the pending cases in their division.They and three other election commissioners signed a strongly worded memorandum slamming Bautista for his “failed leadership” on several election issues, including the delay in the release of honoraria for election workers and a shopping mall company’s “demand for damages” after the Comelec canceled mall voting. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 2016-03-30 03:13:06+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/793978/comelec-sets-p695m-for-barangay-sk-poll-materials | Inquirer | Credible |
On Mar Roxas Comic: Don’t Hate The Artist; Hate The Employer | The comic depicting presidential candidate Mar Roxas in Sa Gitna ng Unos (In the Middle of a Storm) has made quite a stir in a lot of his detractors. Truth be told, it was hoped that the comic would draw more voters to the Liberal Party (LP) faction but has, in fact, drawn even more detractors as it insults the very memory of the victims of Typhoon Haiyan. As a piece of propaganda, Sa Gitna ng Unos achieved the opposite effect of what it was meant to do and not only failed to endear Filipinos to him but outright disgusted some of his own supporters away from his camp.Being a staunch opponent of the LP and its antics, I’m quite pleased with this development as it shows that Mar Roxas is quite behind in terms of potential presidency. However, I am somewhat displeased with the way the artist of the comic is also catching flak to. Granted, I’m not really that much into local comics but I still think that it’s not exactly fair to bash the man who drew the comic as he was merely hired by the lower echelons of the LP to create a comic that will perhaps sway people to their side. One must remember that he was only “hired” to draw the comic, it was never his choice to do so in the first place.Sadly enough, what many of the comic artist’s detractors fail to realize is that many comic artists in the Philippines never get the respect, recognition and, most importantly, revenue that they truly deserve. For instance, asides from Mars Ravelo (creator of Darna) and Carlo J. Caparas (creator of Panday), can you name any other Filipino comic artist that has earned considerable fame and fortune in the Philippines? Truth be told, I doubt there will never be many because not many Pinoys even understand the concept of “art” in the first place. Thanks to the fact that majority of Pinoys can’t tell the difference between superficiality and substance, many artists (and not just comic artists either) are generally ignored in favor of actors who can’t act, singers who can’t sing and dancers who can’t dance and just have pretty faces and friendly but fake attitudes the masses can relate to.What’s even more sad is the artist who drew Sa Gitna ng Unos probably wasn’t even a permanent attachment to the LP’s staff. More likely than not, he’s just another comic artist struggling for some recognition and a little pay to get by. Once the election probably ends, Mar Roxas (given his rather dismissive attitude to people he doesn’t know) would outright forget the artist who worked so hard to polish his image and look down on him as just another desperate employee. Truth be told, if the Philippines held good artists, no matter what their craft may be, in higher regard he would no doubt have more important things to do and better comics to draw than propaganda pieces given to him by corrupt politicians. | [] | 2016-03-30 03:13:06+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2016/03/mar-roxas-comic-dont-hate-artist-hate-employer/ | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
Spy funds ‘reward’ for rogue police | THOUGH he admits that it still needs validation, Sen. Antonio Trillanes 4th has claimed that Malacañang’s intelligence funds were being used as “reward money” for rogue policemen involved in extrajudicial killings of drug suspects.Trillanes made the allegation on Thursday as he also claimed that a certain “Supt. Leonardo,” who belongs to Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) Class of 1996, oversees the operation of the “Philippine Death Squad” under President Rodrigo Duterte.He said Leonardo, supposedly close to Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte, serves as the President’s “point person” or “disbursement officer” for the reward money for his alleged death squads nationwide.When asked what was the source of the reward money, Trillanes replied, “There were many theories being given. We don’t have anything official yet. But as of now, they have intelligence funds which they get from Malacañang.”He said, “I have yet to validate that formally. But they have funding sources and the one who disburses [these funds] is Leonardo.”Trillanes added that Leonardo is the “Sonny Buenaventura” of Duterte’s “Philippine Death Squad.”A self-confessed hired killer, retired police officer Arthur Lascañas, has testified at the Senate that he was involved in the assassination plot of broadcaster Jun Pala in 2003.Lascañas also claimed that Buenaventura, a trusted aide and driver of then-Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, paid him P3 million for the job.“I have to validate this information, Leonardo is a close friend of Paolo Duterte. Leonardo has classmates at PNPA who contacted some rouge cops. They will then secure assignments within the PNP [Philippine National Police] and this Marcos had been assigned to Region 8. So, they already have a designated target,” Trillanes said.Marcos is Supt. Marvin Marcos, who is facing homicide charges along with 18 other police officers involved in the killing in November 2016 of Albuera (Leyte) Mayor Rolando Espinosa and another inmate, Raul Yap, inside their cell at the Baybay (Leyte) sub-provincial jail.Trillanes said he believes that the President had a hand in the move of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre 2nd to downgrade to homicide the murder charges filed against the Marcos group.“I believe that this is the order of President Duterte because if we recall during the testimony here of PNP chief [Ronald de la Rosa] he said that he relieved Marcos and his group because they are not qualified to be with CIDG [Criminal Investigation and Detection Group],” the senator added.But de la Rosa said that days later, the President called him, through his special assistant Bong Go, and ordered him to reinstate Marcos and his group.“One month later, Mayor Espinosa was killed. So, they really had a mission,” Trillanes said.The senator pointed out that from the very start, the President had said he will help his policemen who will face criminal charges for implementing his war on drugs.Marcos, chief of CIDG-Region 8, had been accused of killing Espinosa.He and his co-accused police officers are out on bail as a result of the Department of Justice downgrading to homicide the murder charges filed against them. | ['Bernadette E. Tamayo'] | 2017-06-23 20:53:05+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/spy-funds-reward-rogue-police/334512/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Home alone in Bahay Pangarap | BAHAY Pangarap has not been a dream house so far for President Duterte, who has spent a lonely night there and found the place too big to his liking.The President had already slept at his official residence in Manila, according to his spokesperson, Ernesto Abella, and “he said it was lonely there.”Abella recalled the President as saying that “he had nobody there with him” and felt that the house was too big for him alone.Mr. Duterte’s family is based in his hometown of Davao City and returns to the place every week. But when he needs to govern the country from its capital, he stays at Bahay Pangarap.It was the same bungalow that his bachelor predecessor, President Benigno Aquino III, used as his official residence during his six-year term.The place was renovated for Mr. Aquino in 2010, but no major changes were made for its most recent occupant. A source had earlier said only minor repairs were undertaken and new curtains would be installed.Before he became the Chief Executive, Mr. Duterte said he did not want to sleep in Malacañang and planned to go home to his relatively modest, two-story home in Davao City every day.He had said that he knew ghosts haunted the Malacañang grounds and that his Davao home was his comfort zone.House blessingOn Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Duterte attended the blessing of Bahay Pangarap, photos from Presidential Management Staff Chief Christopher Go showed.The photos showed the President standing beside two priests and holding a candle. He was in a white polo shirt, jeans and fluffy slippers.A “Welcome Mr. President” banner greeted him.Bahay Pangarap was originally a rest house opposite the Palace across from the Pasig River.It was intended to be the venue for informal activities and social functions of the President and the First Family during then President Manuel Quezon’s term, according to the Malacañang website.The rest house was renamed Bahay Pangarap in the early 1960s by then President Diosdado Macapagal’s wife, Evangeline. It was restored during the term of President Fidel V. Ramos and became the club house of the Malacañang Golf Club.In 2008, it was demolished and rebuilt in the contemporary style. A new modern swimming pool was installed to replace the Commonwealth-era facility.Bedrooms were added when the house was renovated anew during Aquino’s stay. | ['Leila B. Salaverria'] | 02/10/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/795702/home-alone-in-bahay-pangarap | Inquirer | Credible |
Mediocre investment and high unemployment in #Philippines traces roots to #Aquino legacy | In 1986, Cory Aquino presided over the passage of a constitution that effectively bars the easy entrance of foreign direct direct investment into the Philippines. Then proceeds to craft an onerous regulatory framework that prevents locals from easily starting new businesses and limits market participation to the established oligarchy. Those companies that remain open are eventually taxed to death and local entrepreneurs are unable to turn a profit unless they participate in the black market.Instead of encouraging innovation or fostering a competitive business climate, the Philippine government tells "heroic" professionals (like joeld) to become part of a ballooning immigrant community that sends remittances to prop up the economy. At home, instead of encouraging the growth of an investment friendly business environment, the Ramos administration creates special economic zones to bypass the labyrinth of local business regulations. Why no administration has ever come to the conclusion that the local business climate would be vastly improved by the same deregulation is beyond me.And now the DOLE laments the fact that there aren't enough workers with technical expertise in the country? It's absurd!http://getrealphilippines.com/blog/2014/01/filipino-labour-force-not-up-to-par-philippines-ready-to-host-foreign-workers/comment-page-1/#comment-201154 | [] | 02/10/2018 0:00 | https://grpshorts.blogspot.com/2014/01/mediocre-investment-and-high.html#comments | GRPundit | Suspicious |
VP Leni Robredo’s Fashion Statement At 88th National Day Of The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia | nothwithstanding).Strike Two for insensitivity for Ms. Robredo. Remember the smiley faces at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin? | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 02/10/2018 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2018/10/02/vp-leni-robredos-fashion-statement-at-88th-national-day-of-the-kingdom-of-saudi-arabia/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Manny Pacquiao Withdraws From Fight Against Jessie Vargas, Is Enjoying His Stint As Philippine Senator | (It’s official. Manny Pacquiao has backed out of his upcoming boxing match with reigning WBO welterweight champion Jessie Vargas earlier scheduled for November 5 in Las Vegas.The championship fight would have signaled Pacquiao’s return to the ring after he had announced his retirement to focus on his new career as an elected Philippine senator.But since assuming his office as a legislator, Pacquiao has been enjoying the sessions, committee hearings, and his privilege speeches at the Senate. “I’m loving the limelight, and being behind the podium and the microphone,” he said.As a former congressman, Pacquiao was criticized for being the top absentee member of the lower house. Filipinos doubted he could deliver on his promise to have a perfect attendance as senator.So far, other than missing the orientation for neophyte senators, Pacquiao has had a 100% attendance so far.Change has indeed come! | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 26/08/2016 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2016/08/26/manny-pacquiao-withdraws-from-fight-against-jessie-vargas-is-enjoying-his-stint-as-philippine-senator/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Senate: Expand 20% student fare discount | THE decision of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to allow students to avail of their 20-percent fare discount even during weekends and holidays was a laudable move but lawmakers said they want to further expand it and cover air, sea and rail transport.Senate Bill 1597 or the Student Fare Act is pending on second reading after it was sponsored by Senators Juan Edgardo Angara and Francis Escudero.If enacted, all students enrolled in basic and tertiary schools, including technical-vocational institutions, will be entitled to a 20-percent discount on regular domestic travel fares upon presentation of their duly-issued school ID or current validated enrollment forms.Angara said students taking up post-graduate studies such as medicine, law, masteral and doctoral degrees and short-term courses will not be qualified to avail of the discount.“Students need not wait for promo fares for them to save some cash when going back to their province and the family can then use the savings from the fare discount for other school fees,” according to the senator, the vice chairman of the education committee.The bill exempts Filipino students who will travel abroad for education, training and competition from payment of travel tax upon proper showing of proof or documentation of intended purpose.In order to protect public transport operators and companies from individuals who might take advantage of the discounts, the measure prohibits the availment of double discounts or combination of the student fare discount with other discount programs.Also, individuals who avail or attempt to avail of the privileges under the student fare law bill through the use of falsified identification documents, fraud or any form of misrepresentation will be subjected to civil and penal liabilities.Meanwhile, land, water, air and rail transportation utilities that refuse to grant student discount will be penalized with a fine ranging from P5,000 to P200,000.The LTFRB, starting today, will implement a memorandum that entitles students to a 20- percent fare discount all-year round including weekends, summer breaks and holidays.“We commend the LTFRB for recognizing the needs of our students. We have long been pushing for the passage of such measure,” Angara said. | ['Jefferson Antiporda'] | 2017-10-27 22:39:49+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/senate-expand-20-student-fare-discount/359045/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Wanted: 200 new immigration officers | The Bureau of Immigration (BI) is hiring more than 200 new immigration officers to help address perennial queues at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) immigration counters brought about by manpower shortage and abolition of payment of overtime fees of its employees from the Express Lane Fund (ELF).“We have started the process of selecting these new personnel by administering written tests and interviewing thousands of applicants who hail from different places, including the Visayas and Mindanao,” Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said on Tuesday.Morente pointed out though that the hiring of the new immigration officers would only provide relief to passenger congestion at the premier airport but would not totally address the problem.He said only the enactment of a new immigration law can provide a feasible and lasting solution to the decades-old problem of lack of manpower in the BI and the low salary of its workers.Morente added that several lawmakers have assured the bureau that a new Philippine immigration law will be passed during the current Congress.The BI recently deployed 37 newly-hired immigration officers to augment the bureau’s workforce at the NAIA Terminals I, II and III after completing their training on immigration laws, rules and procedures.Passenger queues at the NAIA’s immigration counter became a subject of controversy in recent months as some immigration officers resigned or went on indefinite leave as a result of the discontinuance of their overtime pay from the Express Lane Fund.This had forced the BI management to reassign to the NAIA immigration employees stationed at its main office in Manila and other field offices in the provinces.According to Morente, the queues lessened in recent days as fewer immigration officers have been skipping work since the Palace assured that steps will be undertaken to upgrade the take-home pay of BI employees.Effective last month, the bureau cut down its office hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily instead of 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. as a result of the discontinuance of the payment of overtime fees of its employees from the ELF.Express lane charges are additional cost being paid by foreigners who want to fast-track processing of their documents.They are the source of funding to pay for the services of the bureau’s confidential agents, contractual employees and other job orders and for overtime fees.President Rodrigo Duterte, however, vetoed the use of the ELF even as the Department of Budget and Management provided P235 million for the overtime pay of BI employees in the General Appropriations Act or national budget. | ['William Depasupil'] | 2017-06-13 22:10:46+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/wanted-200-new-immigration-officers-2/332557/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Mindanao needs more economic zones | Mindanao needs to have more economic zones to accommodate the expected influx of investors, Philippine Institute of Real Estate Services-Davao (PIRES-Davao) President Dr. Maria Lourdes G. Monteverde said.Monteverde, in an interview, said Mindanao needs the additional economic zones to complement the Duterte administration’s determined move to push for industrialization in the island.She added that it will also prepare the island when the country transitions into a federal form of government to accommodate investors as they start doing business in each federal state.“The thrust now of the Philippines is towards industrialization for the whole country. The eco zone development is timely because this drives with trade and commerce and invite foreign direct investments and increase productivity with facilitation of having warehouses logistics located in eco zones,” she said.She said the island has a comparative advantage in terms of industrialization and agro-forestry compared to Luzon and Visayas.She said that she believed that Mindanao stands to benefit from the appointment of former Butuan Rep. Charity Booc Plaza as Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General.She said, in PIRES-Davao’s last meeting with Plaza, the first batch of economic zone development areas were identified in the Caraga and Davao regions. | [] | 18/12/2016 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2016/12/18/mindanao-needs-more-economic-zones/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Siquijor villagers work together to build toilets | Remote communities in Upper Cabancalan in this town are coming together to help one another build toilets in every home.They are doing it with assistance from the Kapitbisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Central Visayas.DSWD Regional Information officer Leah Quintana said a 2016 barangay household survey found that many people in Lazi defecate in the open because they lack water and toilets.The survey showed that 67 houses in Upper Cabancalan did not have toilets.Quintana said Kalahi-CIDSS has finally provided those households with toilets.Rural health midwife of Lazi, Gemma Lumingkit said people in Upper Cabancalan usually defecate in open spaces outside their homes, such as cornfields. | [] | 01/04/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/04/01/siquijor-villagers-work-together-to-build-toilets/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
CHR chief won’t quit | Despite suggestions that he resign, Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Chair Jose Luis “Chito” Gascon refuses to throw in the towel and vows to continue performing duties mandated by the Constitution.“I will, to the best of my ability, perform my lawful mandate as head of an independent non-partisan constitutional office given the duty to protect and promote human rights in this country,” Gascon said in a statement on Thursday.“I will continue to do so without fear or favor and shall always speak truth to power,” Gascon said in response to chief presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo.Panelo had earlier suggested that Gascon resign because he was biased in the performance of his duties.Panelo made the suggestion after President Duterte remarked in a press conference after his State of the Nation Address on Monday that the CHR was “better abolished.”When he was mayor of Davao City, Mr. Duterte was investigated for alleged human rights violations.While the claims were revived when he was campaigning for the presidency, no charges were filed against him.Since then, Mr. Duterte has repeatedly complained of the bias of the agency, noting that the CHR was quick to fight for the rights of criminals but slow to “raise a whimper” in cases of law enforcers killed on duty.Gascon, however, said “none of my previous or future actions in public office would ever be motivated by vengefulness, vindictiveness, or subjectivity.”The CHR will “always abide by constitutional and human rights precepts in the performance of our duties as we shall keep faith that truth and justice shall ultimately prevail,” he added.“Secretary Panelo should focus on his job of trying to give the best legal advice he can muster for the Office of the President as I will do what I can in doing my job as best as I can,” Gascon said.Gascon also reacted to Mr. Duterte’s remark that CHR was “better abolished,” saying the abolition of the CHR would require an amendment to the 1987 Constitution.“Any discussion to abolish CHR or any other institution for that matter can be taken in the proposed constitutional reform process,” he said, adding he would “cross the bridge when we get there.”Gascon said Mr. Duterte’s statements removed “any doubt regarding the attitude his administration will take toward respecting the human rights guarantees enshrined in the Constitution.”“The actions during the first year of his presidency coupled with his words said over the same period exhibits an utter disregard for due process, equal protection, and other civil liberties. This has encouraged the deepening of impunity,” Gascon said.Gascon said Mr. Duterte’s pronouncements “encourage the security forces to act beyond established operations protocols without any attendant safeguards or effective accountability mechanisms to guard against abuse.”Vice President Leni Robredo also opposed Mr. Duterte’s suggestion to abolish the CHR because it would strip ordinary Filipinos, especially the poor, of protection against abuses.“If the CHR is abolished, it’s as if we’re really not giving protection to those who have long been suffering in our society,” Robredo said in a school building inauguration in Calabanga, Camarines Sur province.Robredo said the agency was purposely created and enshrined in the 1987 Constitution because of the country’s experience with human rights abuses at the hands of the government.“It is enshrined in our Constitution because of our experience with human rights abuses, which our own government officials have committed,” she said. | ['Jaymee T. Gamil'] | 09/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/918541/chr-chief-wont-quit | Inquirer | Credible |
Eastern Visayas police intensifies drive vs illegal logging and fishing | The Philippine National Police (PNP) in Eastern Visayas has included in its list of priorities the intensified drive against illegal logging and illegal fishing.Eastern Visayas regional police director Chief Supt. Gilbert DC Cruz said the intensified campaign against illegal logging and illegal fishing is his top priority as the new regional director of the police force in Leyte and Samar.Cruz said the campaign against illegal logging and illegal fishing is in support of the campaign of the national government to help preserve the environment.From October 5 to 8, various police stations in the region conducted 69 anti-illegal logging operations which resulted in the arrest of 12 individuals and confiscation of P758,224 worth of illegally- cut lumber and two chainsaws, Cruz said.In the campaign against illegal fishing, 47 operations were conducted, and resulted in the arrest of 80 fishermen and confiscation of 14 fine mesh nets, two active gear compressors and 32 fishing boats.Cruz said criminal charges have been filed by the various police stations against the arrested individuals. | [] | 09/10/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/10/09/eastern-visayas-police-intensifies-drive-vs-illegal-logging-and-fishing/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Duck raisers laud, thank gov’t for lifting poultry ban | Duck raisers here expressed their profound gratitude to the government for lifting the ban on the trade and transport of live poultry and its by-products, which help them recover from financial loses.The Candaba Duck Raisers and Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative specifically lauded the efforts of the Department of Agriculture (DA), the provincial government of Pampanga and concerned local government units, saying all the stakeholders were concerned with their predicament as they faced millions of peso losses in the duck industry following the bird flu outbreak in San Luis town.“Maraming salamat sa tulong ninyo at hindi ninyo kami pinabayaan sa gitna ng krisis,’’ said Benedicta Baylon, president of the cooperative.She particularly cited Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda for her efforts in ensuring that the duck industry bounces back and recovers.Candaba Mayor Danilo Baylon also lauded the DA’s lifting of the ban as he expressed hope that this will encourage poultry farm owners to continue or restart their business.He said the bird flu outbreak in San Luis town resulted in massive losses at least P5-million a day to duck egg raisers as 80 percent of their egg production is shipped to Visayas and Mindanao, and only 20 percent are distributed in the island of Luzon.He also stressed that the avian outbreak also significantly affected poultry feed sales.“Sa totoo nyan 30 pesos nalang ang farm gate price ng mga manok sa buong Central Luzon,” the mayor said.The mayor further appealed to the national government for the financial assistance to be provided to the poultry farmers and displaced farm workers in the province.The Department of Agriculture (DA) lifted the poultry ban from Luzon to other parts of the country based on the recommendations of biosecurity experts that it is now safe to move the poultry products.Also, DA said the avian flu outbreak had been contained in San Luis town.The DA, however, clarified that restriction remains on poultry products from within the 7-kilometer control area in Barangay San Carlos in San Luis town. | [] | 23/08/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/08/23/duck-raisers-laud-thank-govt-for-lifting-poultry-ban/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
WHAT WENT BEFORE: Christian sect linked to several controversies | Apollo Quiboloy, a televangelist and founder of a Christian sect called Kingdom of Jesus Christ, the Name Above Every Name, has been linked to several controversies including land-grabbing cases, a custody dispute and the recent attempt to smuggle cash out of Hawaii.In 2005, Quiboloy and his group was investigated following a demand by a mother in Baguio City to reclaim custody of her daughter from his group.Erlinda Rillon alleged that Quiboloy lured Baguio teenagers and young adults, like her daughter, Arlene, who refused to return home.The Rillons sued the sect’s Baguio coordinators for abducting and detaining their daughter, but a Baguio Regional Trial Court judge dismissed the case when Arlene turned 19 in August 2004.In May 2005 the sect filed libel charges against the Rillon couple, who were arrested three months later but were released on bail.Three years later, Rillon finally saw her daughter. But Arlene sued her parents and three government social workers for forcing her to return to Baguio.Killing of datuIn 2008, Quiboloy was tagged as the brains behind the killing of Datu Dominador Diarog, a leader of the Bagobo-K’lata tribe in Davao City’s Tugbok district.On April 29, 2008, unidentified men fired at Diarog’s house, wounding him, his wife and two of their children.He died the next day at the hospital.His wife believes her husband was killed for refusing to sell 2 hectares of their property for P50,000 to followers of Quiboloy.Planted to several crops, the property is within the 700-ha ancestral domain claimed by the Bagobos in Tugbok. It is nestled on a hilltop that Quiboloy’s congregation reportedly wanted to develop into a highland resort.Quiboloy published a statement in various Davao City newspapers denying any involvement in the killing.In February 2014, Quiboloy and his sect were again caught in another land-grabbing controversy involving ancestral land in another part of Tugbok.According to the victims, armed men forced them from their homes at Sitio Diolo, telling them their land had been sold to Quiboloy.Sitio Diolo, home to 20 “lumad” households, is part of the 6,800-ha ancestral domain claim of the Bagobo-K’lata tribe and includes 10 lumad communities at Tugbok’s Barangay Manuel Guianga.Members of the sect, however, said Quiboloy had nothing to do with the land dispute. They said former Sitio Diolo residents had turned over their rights to the Jesus Christ Workers and Members Cooperative, in exchange for cash or goods.Source: Inquirer Archives | ['Inquirer Research'] | 16/12/2016 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/979937/what-went-before-christian-sect-linked-to-several-controversies | Inquirer | Credible |
Tacloban thanks DILG for post-Yolanda projects | The city government thanked the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) for stepping up recovery efforts in this typhoon-hit city under the new administration.Mayor Cristina Romualdez on Friday said the city government is lucky to be a recipient of DILG-funded projects after the devastation of super typhoon Yolanda.Romualdez was referring to the Reconstruction Assistance on Yolanda (RAY) funded projects such as city hall rehabilitation, court office, and repair of village facilities.“DILG has lived up to its mandate to promote public safety and strengthen local government capability toward effective delivery of basic services to the citizenry,” she said.The mayor issued the statement after DILG Secretary Ismael Sueno visited the city on Thursday to lead the inauguration of the Tacloban City Court office building.The city trial court located at the city hall grounds has two rooms at the first floor. The upper floor is the office of the City Civil Registrar.Sueno lauded the resiliency of Tacloban residents who recovered right after the typhoon.The DILG chief also went to the Leyte provincial capitol to unveil the Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) marker for the province.Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla described the award as a product of the collaborative effort of all employees of the provincial government.As recipient of the SGLG award, the province of Leyte will receive Performance Challenge Fund, an incentive to local government units implementing projects addressing the basic needs of residents. | [] | 16/12/2016 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2016/12/16/tacloban-thanks-dilg-for-post-yolanda-projects/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Gilas Pilipinas: Duterte Responds To Robredo | Malacañang has issued the following statement from President Rodrigo Duterte in response to a statement by Vice President Leni Robredo regarding the brawl between Gilas Pilipinas and the Australian Boomers. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 04/07/2018 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2018/07/04/gilas-pilipinas-duterte-responds-to-robredo/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
HAWAIIAN SHAKA SIGN IS NEW SYMBOL OF THAILAND’S PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTS | A cinema chain in Bangkok has cancelled screenings of the new Hunger Games film after protesters adopted the movie’s three-fingered defiant sign against totalitarian rule.Activists say police ordered the move after hundreds of students planned to protest at an opening day screening of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 on Thursday. Thailand has been under military rule since May, and authorities have banned the salute as part of an ongoing crackdown on pro-democratic dissent.The students were obviously disappointed at the film cancellation. They have been waiting a long time to see the popular new film that stars Academy award-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence. They appealed to the cinema chain and the police to bring back the screening of the blockbuster film series.As a compromise, the students promised to change the symbol of their protest from the three-fingered salute to the Hawaiian shaka sign. They were hoping that the Thai military government would be more tolerant of the laid-back, less intimidating symbol of Aloha. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 21/11/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2014/11/21/hawaiian-shaka-sign-is-new-symbol-of-thailands-pro-democracy-protests/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Liliosa Hilao: First Martial Law detainee killed | (Second of a series)Liliosa Hilao, who died at the age of 23, was the first reported case of a student activist who died in detention during martial law.Her asthma may have prevented Lilli—as friends called her—from joining rallies but she found other ways to express her conviction.A consistent honor student in elementary and high school, she studied communication arts at Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM), where she became an editor at PLM’s school paper, “Hasik.”An active student despite being sickly, Lilli was a leader, the student president of the communication arts department and a representative to PLM’s student central government.A secretary of the Women’s Club of Pamantasan, Lilli organized the Communication Arts Club in PLM. She was also a member of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines.Death came for Lilli in April 1973 when she was abducted by drunken soldiers looking for her brother. Troopers from the Constabulary Anti-Narcotics Unit (Canu) raided the family’s house and Lilli demanded a search warrant. In response, the soldiers slapped her.She was later handcuffed and taken in for questioning. When a brother-in-law came to see her at the camp, her face was swollen. She said she was tortured.The following day, Lilli was dead.According to an official Canu report, Lilli committed suicide by drinking muriatic acid. But postmortem findings showed she was tortured.Her face was severely swollen. Her lips bore cigarette burns. She had 11 injection marks in her arms and deep handcuff marks on her wrists. Her torso was badly bruised with finger marks and gun-barrel marks. It was also possible she was sexually abused.Lilli died before she could graduate. Because she was a consistent scholar, a vacant seat was reserved for her during the ceremonies. She was given posthumous cum laude honors.Another young activist, Jan Quimpo, was at the Hilao residence when soldiers from Canu abducted him, along with Lilli and two other Philippine Science High School (PSHS) students.Jan, along with his brother Ishmael “Jun” Quimpo, was exposed to student demonstrations that marked the turbulent days of the early 1970s after their family moved near Manila’s university belt.Jan, the first activist of the family, was described as a mild-mannered boy with an occasional rebellious streak. He was 13 when he was awarded a scholarship at PSHS.After being exposed to rundown facilities, late monthly stipends and substandard living conditions in what was supposed to be a highly regarded institution, he joined his fellow scholars in protesting their poor conditions.Alliances formedWhen the student protests in Metro Manila against the abuses of the Marcos administration escalated in 1970, several PSHS students, including Jan, joined the rallies. They forged alliances with college activists from the University of the Philippines (UP), particularly Kabataang Makabayan (KM).Jan’s ambition changed to being a “kadre,” or someone dedicated to serving the masses in a revolutionary way. He started spending time with squatter families, eking out a living mostly by quarrying adobe blocks.In 1971, an increase in gas prices triggered widespread demonstrations by students and transport workers. In UP Diliman, a student was shot dead at a student barricade.Students responded by blockading the university gates from police and soldiers, triggering the putting up of what was called the Diliman Commune. Jan, a high school senior at PSHS at that time, took part in that event.Recruitment workWithin PSHS, students held daily protests and walked out of their classes. The faculty could not find enough students to fill the classrooms. Eventually, school officials simply allowed the two most senior batches to graduate. Jan was among them.While Jan passed the entrance exams for college at UP Diliman, he went to school not to attend classes but to meet fellow activists and recruit others. Soon, he dropped out and worked full-time as an activist.Packing his bags, he left home and lived at the KM headquarters.On April 4, 1973, Jan was at the house of schoolmate Marie Hilao when a group of antinarcotics troopers came demanding to see Marie’s brother, who was also an activist. Failing to find their target, they took Jan, two other PSHS students and two of Marie’s sisters.All were subjected to physical and psychological torture. Marie’s sister Lilli died as a result.After Lilli’s death, the torture sessions ceased. Jan was moved to a detention cell and, three months later, was released.Never seen againIn October 1977, Constabulary troopers raided the Quimpo house looking for Jan’s brother Jun, who was out at the time. The troopers left without arresting anyone.Two weeks later, Jan left home, saying he was coming back for dinner. He never returned. All attempts by the family to find him failed.They received reports that Jan was seen in several public places, curiously turning away if a friend tried to approach him. The conclusion they made was that he had been arrested and was likely being used to trace other activists.But these reports stopped coming in not long after. Jan was never seen again. He was 23.Jan’s brother Jun is remembered by friends and family as a talented college dropout who chose to work for the poor and devote his life to the cause of the downtrodden.Only 13 when the First Quarter Storm erupted, Jun was caught in the spirit of his time. He wanted to participate, and felt he was spoiled by his easy life.In 1971, 14-year-old Jun joined the KM chapter in San Beda and participated in rallies.First exposureWhen martial law was declared, Jun was enrolled at UP Diliman. He joined the youth committee of the Consultative Committee on Student Affairs—an alternative to the Marcos-banned student councils.But Jun was more interested in community work. His first community exposure was at Constitution Hills in Quezon City, then a relocation area for squatters. It is now the site of the House of Representatives.He also became a member of Alyansa ng Maralita sa Tatalon, a big slum community in Quezon City, where he continued his organizing work, engaging residents in political discussions and urging them to step out of their idleness, hopelessness, and beer-drinking sprees, and take responsibility for their future.It was during this time that Jun began writing songs, through which he expressed his views and dreams.At first, he would take existing protest songs and change their lyrics, like those for the Sanggunian, a song composed in 1975 which advocated the restoration of the student councils under martial law.With a guitar, he would sing for hours, inspiring people and making them feel strong.After Jun was arrested and detained for 10 days in 1976 for participating in a rally of 5,000 informal settlers in front of Manila Cathedral, he decided to leave the city, give up college and join the antimartial law underground movement in the rural areas, where he worked for the next five years.In December 1981, in Kalasitan, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija province, Jun was having a meal when someone shot him from the back several times.A certain Juan Simon, Jun’s former comrade who had surrendered to the Constabulary, admitted responsibility for the slaying. Jun was 24 years old.Jun’s family came up with a collection of his songs, “Ang Awit ni Jun (The Songs of Jun),” in his honor and memory. Marielle Medina and Kate Pedroso, Inquirer ResearchSources: Subversive Lives: A Family Memoir of the Marcos Years, Bantayog.orgRELATED STORIESNever too young to be heroesLawmaker proposes heroes’ cemeteries in provinces | ['Kate Pedroso', 'Marielle Medina'] | 19/01/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/718061/liliosa-hilao-first-martial-law-detainee-killed | Inquirer | Credible |
Miss New Zealand’s special place in the hearts of Baguioans | The very warm and hospitable people of this city might have gone awestruck over the visit of 28 of the most beautiful ladies in the world competing for the Miss Universe crown, but in their hearts, they were cheering very especially for two candidates – Miss Philippines Maxine Medina and Miss New Zealand Tania Dawson.“We are very proud that there is someone from Baguio who is competing in the Miss Universe and we pray for the best in this pageant,” said Baguio City Mayor Mauricio Domogan, referring to Dawson who is half-Filipino.Dawson, 24, is a daughter of Margarita Palabay who was born in Baguio and raised in Sta. Maria, Pangasinan before marrying a New Zealander.Tania’s family led by her mother, together with their friends, had a homecoming and showed their full support for her joining one of the most glamorous and prestigious beauty pageants in the world.“Masayang-masaya kami at lahat ng pamilya at kaibigan ko ng anak ko ay naandito ngayon (We’re very happy that all of my family members, my friends and my daughters friends are here today),” said Margarita as they held up banners on the roadside where the floral floats carrying the candidates passed by last Wednesday.Domogan said he was wishing both Dawson and Medina the best outcome in the pageant on January 30. | [] | 19/01/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/01/19/miss-new-zealands-special-place-in-the-hearts-of-baguioans/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
WATCH: Chief Bato punishes ‘scalawags’ police | PNP Chief Ronald dela Rosa was fuming mad as seven policemen involved in ‘tokhang for ransom’ were presented to him on Wednesday.“P****nyo, nag police kayo pa para mag sindakato. Nakakahiya kayo” said dela Rosa who ordered the seven to do push-ups.The seven policemen were the team who abducted 3 koreans in Angeles City last December. WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW:What can you say about this video? Leave your comments below! | [] | 2017-02-01 23:37:01+08:00 | http://duterte.today/watch-chief-bato-punishes-scalawags-police/ | Duterte Daily Stories | Suspicious |
Two Catholic bishops pass away on same day | THE 131-member Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has lost two of its members on the same day to cancer.Bishop Leopoldo Tumulak of the Military Ordinariate of the Philippines (MOP) and San Fernando City (La Union) Bishop Rodolfo Beltran both passed away on Saturday.Tumulak,72, died of pancreatic cancer at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center in Mandaluyong City at 1:26 p.m., while Bautista, 68, expired six hours later of prostrate cancer at the University of Santo Tomas Hospital in Manila.The MOP is a personal diocese for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Coast Guard.At the time of his death, Tumulak was also chairman of the CBCP’s Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care.He also served as the first chairman of the bishops’ Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church from 1996 to 2005.In 2000, Pope John Paul II appointed him as a Consultor to the Vatican’s Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, a position he held until 2005.A native of Santander town in Cebu province, Tumulak was ordained priest in March 1971.In January 1987, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Cebu and served at the post for five years until 1992 when he was named the bishop of Tagbilaran City (Bohol).Beltran was serving his fourth year as bishop of San Fernando at the time of his death.He was born on November 13, 1948 in Gattaran, Cagayan and was ordained priest on March 25, 1976.Beltran served as parish priest of Saint Anne Parish, Buguey, Cagayan (1997-1999) and of Saint Peter Cathedral, Tuguegarao City (also in Cagayan) from 1999 to 2005.On March 18, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Vicar Apostolic of Bontoc-Lagawe.On October 30, 2012, he was appointed as the bishop of San Fernando City, La Union.Pope Francis is expected to name the two bishops’ replacements in accordance with the Vatican’s rules on succession.The Supreme Pontiff or the Pope has the ultimate decision whom to choose based on a list of candidates forwarded by the Philippine Apostolic Nuncio to the Congregation for Bishops in Rome.WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL | ['William Depasupil'] | 2017-06-18 19:32:47+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/two-catholic-bishops-pass-away-day/333518/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Nightmare finally over for PH domestic workers | Seila Rasid smiled as she looked out the glass window of Gate 12 at Terminal 1 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) on Monday. She was home.She sneaked into Kuwait in 2012 to get some “alone time or a vacation” after learning that she was an adopted child.But instead of vacationing, she illegally worked in Kuwait as a domestic helper and went through five years of hell at the hands of brutal employers.Now 22 and six months pregnant by her Syrian boyfriend, Rasid could smile as she pronounced her “nightmare finally over.”Rasid was one of 377 migrants brought home by the government on Monday as President Duterte clamped a ban on deployment of workers to Kuwait due to reports of abuse against Filipinos by Kuwait employers.Protest urgedThe migrants arrived home as the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) urged the government to file a diplomatic protest over the maltreatment of Filipinos in Kuwait.Balanga Bishop Ruperto Santos, chair of the CBCP’s Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, backed the government’s decision to ban the deployment of workers to the emirate following the discovery of the body of a Filipino woman in a freezer at an abandoned apartment.“It’s only right to file a diplomatic protest. Ensure that those responsible be made accountable, and stop the deployment of [workers] and take care of [the] Filipino workers there,” Santos said on Church-run Radio Veritas.The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration is expecting more than 2,500 migrants to return home by Feb. 22, according to its chief, Hans Leo Cacdac.The migrants flown in on Monday had either escaped from abusive employers and sought help from the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait or had overstayed there, he said.Cacdac said he believed more Filipinos wanted to go home but could not get in touch with the embassy for help. They could be illegal workers whose movements are restricted by their employers.Fake passportRasid, a native of Malabang town in Lanao del Sur, had been one of them. She had traveled to Kuwait on a fake passport that showed she was born in 1946.That she got past immigration both in Manila and in Kuwait indicated the hand of unscrupulous people whose work had landed tens of thousands of Filipinos like her in the homes of foreigners who treated them like animals.“You won’t recognize me years ago because my face was covered with bruises,” she said, as she spoke of her experience at the hands of her first employer, an old Kuwaiti man.“He never called me by my name. He called me ‘hayman’ (animal) or ‘mar’ (monster) and even ‘kelb’ (dog),” she said. “But that was all right. I needed the job and the money.”She said she was punched, kicked and had her head smashed on a wall. “They are demons there in Kuwait,” she said.She said she was sold to a Syrian family, who sold her to a labor agency. When she got the chance, she escaped with only the clothes on her back and was adopted by a group of Filipinos.Rasid vowed never to return to Kuwait, but 41-year-old Alma Cabarles, who was also among those repatriated on Monday, would do so “if the offer is right.” | ['Dexter Cabalza'] | 21/06/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/968280/nightmare-finally-over-for-ph-domestic-workers | Inquirer | Credible |
He was my human rights lawyer | I AM STILL a bit shaky after learning from Inquirer editor in chief Letty J. Magsanoc that Joker Arroyo has “passed on to the highest court in the great beyond,” but I am under orders “to write a personal tribute,” so I write.When an Army general of the Marcos dictatorship slapped me with a P10-million libel suit in 1983 for my Panorama magazine article on human rights violations committed against rural folks in Bataan province, the publication gave me a lawyer, and from the Siguion-Reyna Law Office no less.And then I got a call from Joker Arroyo whom I had never spoken to personally but whom I knew as a tough human rights lawyer and defender of big-name Marcos victims as well as unknown ones languishing in the dungeons of martial rule. I had been familiar with cases documented by the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), a mission partner of the Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines, and had helped in some of their publications, so his name rang loud.His face was familiar too because he was among those often photographed with bigwigs of the anti-Marcos forces in rallies. He was also in photographs taken at the court trial of Ninoy Aquino that showed the defense team that included him and Sen. Lorenzo Tañada.Could he have a word with me? Joker said on the phone. Could we meet somewhere?Joker came alone to a small restaurant in Quezon City and offered to be my lawyer. Pro bono, of course. I told him that I already had a lawyer, Saklolo Leano of Siguion-Reyna. He said he knew “Sak,” that they would work together to defend me. He was insistent and I couldn’t help wondering why my case meant the world to him. Perhaps because his late sister Nimia was a writer, I mused.Defending women writersJust a little backgrounder. I had been the first writer to be interrogated by the defense department (1980) and later was one of several women writers who went through a series of interrogations conducted by a military tribunal (1983). “National Intelligence Board” was how the military officers called themselves. It was the brainchild of Gen. Fabian Ver, then the Armed Forces chief of staff. I called them the Sanhedrin.And then my case became like a trial balloon. In street-corner lingo, “sasampolan.” That was after our group, Women Writers in Media Now, routed the “National Intelligence Board” at the Supreme Court. We had a battery of human rights Mabini lawyers, with Tañada leading the pack, and Joker was among them.We thought it was over. All of a sudden, Brig. Gen. Artemio Tadiar, commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade, came out of the woodwork to claim he had been maligned by the article. He had become a military attaché somewhere, but a P10-million libel suit was staring me in the face. It was pure harassment.Rosary in his pocketI said yes to Joker defending my case. While saying goodbye after our talk, he pulled out something from his pocket, a handkerchief, I think, and out fell his rosary.The case was filed in Manila. I remember Joker telling me to make myself unobtrusive until bail had been posted, else I’d be handcuffed by the sheriff right there. At the preliminary hearing, Joker and Rene Saguisag clashed swords with then fiscal Jose Flaminiano (Joe Flame, Joker called him).Well, to my chagrin, the Joe Flame filed the case for hearing. I don’t recall the name of the legal maneuver Joker did to make the case hibernate but it did. Thankfully, it did not progress to see me impoverished and in prison because the 1986 Edsa People Power Revolution happened.Still, I made sure the case was finally dropped. Joker, President Cory Aquino’s executive secretary, made sure that would happen.I was assigned to do a Sunday Inquirer Magazine cover story on Joker, the executive secretary (“Joker Arroyo Looks Back,” Feb. 24, 1991) for the fifth anniversary of the triumph of people power that saw the Marcos dictatorship crashing down. The Q & A is still quite a read.‘Humanized’Joker sent a handwritten letter dated Feb. 21, 1991, tucked inside a long white envelope with a Post-It on the flap. So old-school, I thought. He sent it through then Inquirer publisher Eggie Apostol.It read:“Eggie was indulgent enough to send me an advance copy. I felt great, being alternately humanized, then made bigger than life, then being combative, then supposedly humble in a stylish play of words and format only you can craft. Thanks really.“I kept reading and rereading it like a priest reads and rereads the breviary in blind faith. And the paper didn’t soil. Has the color any preservative?“Why don’t you, Lorna (then magazine editor), Bullit (Marquez, Associated Press photojournalist) and I meet for Chinese or Japanese, Filipino or Thai, Italian or Spanish lunch? Do set the date a week ahead or whatever. If mater publisher will condescend, it will be nice for her to join and stifle the fun. Most sincerely, Joker. P.S. Your handwriting is the trademark of a school.”A faxed letter, now fading on thermal paper, was his reaction to my feature article on the exhibit of medieval torture instruments and King Ludwig’s castle that I visited in Germany. It continued with a letter to magazine editor Lorna Kalaw-Tirol congratulating her.“Why my interest in this (the Inquirer magazine)? I was editor of the Chinese Commercial News, a pre-martial law Chinese language paper. When the Yuyitung brothers, Quintin and Rizal, owners, were deported in 1970, I took over as editor so the show (newspaper) will go on. Advertising became my concern and was illiterate in Chinese. I was their lawyer.”(The names of the Yuyitung brothers are now carved on the granite Wall of Remembrance of Bantayog ng mga Bayani dedicated to heroes and martyrs who fought, died or were imprisoned during the martial law years, a number of whom Joker had defended.)‘Equipoise’Another note, written on Civil Liberties Union of the Philippines/Free Legal Assistance Group stationery said: “Your answers conveyed unabashed humility and plain grit. Very searing. I just thought I should let you know.” I think it was about an article on me. Printed at the bottom of the stationery were the names Lorenzo M. Tañada, Jose W. Diokno and Joker P. Arroyo. The Mabini brotherhood of lawyers was not yet in existence then.From Joker, I learned the meaning of “equipoise” that he used to describe a trait of Sr. Mariani Dimaranan SFIC, human rights defender and founder of TFDP. After she died and I was writing an article on her, I asked Joker for a quote and he obliged. What a tribute he gave.So many years have passed but the women writers and the Mabini lawyers continued to keep in touch with each other, our way of expressing our appreciation for their stand and struggle to defend the oppressed and see justice prevail. A number of them later occupied elective and appointive positions in government, among them, Joker Arroyo (executive secretary, congressman, senator), Rene Saguisag (senator), Fulgencio Factoran (environment secretary), Augusto Sanchez (labor secretary), but they did not enrich themselves. (Joker, you know why I am saying this.)When we came together to wine and dine, there would be lots of reminiscences, political gossip, teasing, jokes and laughter. We would also speak about painful and crushing incidents in the past. Joker would come with his wry sense of humor but would occasionally give in to cajoling and break open his thoughts even while feigning disinterest in silly, mundane matters.No goodbyesThe second to the last time we lunched with Mabini lawyers Joker, Saguisag and Factoran was sometime in 2013. Joker ordered Chinese food and paid for it. When reminiscing time came, I suddenly remembered and narrated that small rosary incident with Joker when I was an endangered species. What do you know, the three formidable human rights lawyers, food in their mouths, instantly dug into their pockets and brought out their rosaries. Joker, too, had his.No goodbyes, Joker. You left on the month of the rosary. My prayers and sympathies to your daughters and your lawyer-wife Fely.I had written about persons who mattered to the lives of many and to my own, persons who are listed in my book. If I may quote myself, let me say and apply this to you, too: “You will be reborn in my words/ On the pages I write you will rise/ You will die say goodbye/ But I will remember/ I will make you live again in my words.” | ['Ma. Ceres P. Doyo'] | 21/06/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/728925/he-was-my-human-rights-lawyer | Inquirer | Credible |
FilAms Who Attended FASO Gala In Los Angeles Want A Refund | Many Filipino Americans living in Los Angeles coughed up big bucks (translation: U.S. dollars) to be among the selected few to witness a performance of one of the most revered cultural/dance traditions of their homeland — the ‘Rigodon de Honor.”The Rigodon is a traditional dance from the Philippines that evolved from dances brought to thePacific islands by Spanish settlers in the sixteenth century. Historically, the dance is meant to represent a certain sense of elevated status among those who take part in it, and is often performed at galas, balls and other formal occasions celebrated by the rich and powerful.It was supposed to be a highlight of the fundraising gala sponsored by FASO, the Filipino American Symphony Orchestra Foundation, billed as a night of music, dance and culture.But alas, what invited guests witnessed was a Rigodon de Dishonor, highlighted by the presence of Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo who turned the prestigious cultural event into a laylayan political event.Nobody in the audience wanted to listen to her lies about the Duterte government, Martial Law in Mindanao, the Philippines’ war on drugs and her supposed fundraising for the victims of the Marawi City terrorist siege. But Robredo was oblivious to the evening’s purpose.And so, as she took to the podium (actually a music stand) to deliver her packaged speech prepared by Georgina Hernandez and her socmed staff, the guests walked out in disgust.Now, FASO has been deluged with letters, phone calls and emails demanding for refunds of the cost of tickets paid by the invitees who were so looking forward to witness the Rigodon de Honor.It must be a dishonorable next few weeks for FASO. But it should be a lesson learned. Well learned. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 21/06/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2017/06/21/filams-who-attended-faso-gala-in-los-angeles-want-a-refund/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Luistro: Working with media like training dragon | In his six-year stint as head of the Department of Education (DepEd), Secretary Armin Luistro’s relationship with the media since he first joined the DepEd in 2010 may be likened to that of the animated movie “How To Train Your Dragon.”“Over the past six years, I think the engagement with the media is like befriending a dragon. At first, as a dragon, you spit out fire and you look like you’re out to eat us all,” a calm and relaxed Luistro said in his speech at the farewell lunch that the DepEd hosted for the media at its headquarters in Pasig City.Luistro, who admitted to being “necessarily cautious if not suspicious” of the media in the early years of his term, said it was only after he listened to media’s countless questions that he eventually learned to understand that “you don’t need to kill the dragon and that you can befriend the dragon.”“That wasn’t easy for me—someone who’s new to government [service] and accustomed to private life,” said Luistro, president of De La Salle University before he accepted the education portfolio in 2010.Not all rosyLuistro’s engagements with the media since he took office weren’t all rosy, especially during his first interview in June 2010 after he officially became the head of the DepEd. Luistro even described that moment as a “very, very bad encounter.”At that time, the proposed sex education in schools was a hot topic. After then Education Secretary Mona Valisno turned over the post to him, Luistro was asked by reporters on his position on the proposal.Luistro was caught on camera saying: “You know, the media is not helping resolve the issues. They’ll pit us against each other and they won’t discuss the issues properly, calmly. We will talk about it without media, so don’t ask me about sex education because you’re not giving any help.”Media literacyHe told reporters covering the DepEd that because of that incident, President Aquino ordered Cabinet secretaries to undergo a media literacy program.“I was blamed by the new secretaries. It was because of me that we needed to undergo such seminar,” Luistro said, drawing laughter from the DepEd officials and around 40 reporters at the event.“It was toward the end of my term that I realized that you were actually doing your job. For you not to ask questions will make you lazy. For us who are new [to government], it was a bit hard to see. Over time, I realized that the engagement is also a relationship,” he said.Great rideHe pointed out that if it were not for media’s incessant questioning, the public would have not known of the reforms they have initiated in the department, most especially the landmark K-12 education reform program.Luistro, who steps down on Friday as the first education secretary to finish a six-year term, described his journey with the media at the DepEd as “a great ride.” | ['Jovic Yee'] | 2017-03-31 15:01:03+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/792991/luistro-working-with-media-like-training-dragon | Inquirer | Credible |
I Will Make Like A Hockey Player And Get The Puck Out Of Here | This is the endBeautiful friendThis is the endMy only friend, the end Of our elaborate plans, the endOf everything that stands, the endNo safety or surprise, the endI’ll never look into your eyes…againThe Doors.I am so done with GRP . Today I am recanting every opinion I had before. I will leave it up here as a service to humankind. My old blog posts will serve not as a signpost for future generations but as a warning of what you are capable of when you are high on stupidity.Today, April 1st 2017 I will recant just about everything I have written in this site.Noynoy Aquino with the help of some hindsight was the best choice for president at the time. It is not like he and his sidekicks will ever see the inside of a court room anytime soon for what they did while they were in power.Mar Roxas would been a great president if he wasn’t cheated. As DILG he gave us many examples of his leadership and independent thought. What is very understated that he has now been married to that angel Korina Sanchez for seven years now and that alone must say something about the solid character of Mar. To attract and keep that woman in his life makes him the envy of us all who are not married or who are married to lesser women.Leila De Lima is an under appreciated public servant who is now in jail as thanks for all her hard work. She stopped that louse GMA from leaving the country and without the aid of silly things like a legal document to counter the SC TRO For some who think she is too chummy with drug lords l well there is this Catholic framework known as the Corporal Works of Mercy. One of those works is ” visit the imprisoned”. Well that is exactly what Leila did. Prison for her was a nice place to visit but why should she have to stay there?Tony Trillanes, another political figure misaligned by GRP. Everybody keeps bringing up Oakwood ( now Ascot) and Peninsula. I am sure there is a chapter in Sun Tze’s Art of War that will completely justify his actions. Strategy is all about using what you have to take advantage of the situation. Trillanes learned somewhere along the way in his studies at the PMA that he could one day use his eyes to parlay him to freedom given the right jail master. I am not sure about you but we need that kind of cunning and ruthlessness if we are ever going to get this country back in the right direction.Leni Robredo is everybody’s favorite punching bag. Why? You should admire someone who is so hardworking and devoted that she goes all the way to the UN just to read to them the New York Times, Rappler and some added hearsay. She is the hardest working woman in show business. Why should someone so treasured be impeached? This GRP makes no sense.I really want to leave this flea bag of a website behind. Get Real Philippines is a source of FAKE NEWS. Yet I do not want to leave writing behind. I will take my talents to a fledgling website more aligned with my recently developed sensibilities. I will from now own I will see the world through banana colored glasses like Jim Paredes, Archbishop Villegas, Leah Navarro, Cynthia Patag, and a host of other fair A website I feel I can help grow into a font of enlightenment for the Filipino and other citizens of the world. A website that will make GRP writhe in my cage of torment. https://bsaquinorules.com/ | ['Oratio Imperata'] | 2017-03-31 15:01:03+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2017/04/will-make-like-hockey-player-get-puck/ | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
Senator Trillanes Wants To Summon Baste Duterte | Frustrated that Paolo Duterte refused to undress in front of the Senate and on national television to prove his allegation that the Davao City Vice Mayor is a member of the Triad organization, Senator Antonio Trillanes now wants to summon Baste Duterte, Paolo’s brother.At a Senate hearing last week, Trillanes challenged the Vice Mayor to show the tattoo on his back, to which the latter responded, “No way!”“I firmly believe that the Triad membership runs in the family, so if Paolo refuses to show his tattoo, perhaps Baste would be more open to undressing before the Senate,” Trillanes said.As of presstime, Baste has not responded to Trillanes’ summons plan.It’s getting more exciting, folks! | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 09/09/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2017/09/09/senator-trillanes-wants-to-summon-baste-duterte/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Angara urges jobs for Marawi residents | SENATOR Juan Edgardo Angara on Saturday urged the public employment service offices (PESOs) in neighboring areas of Marawi City to provide jobs to displaced workers due to the ongoing conflict between government forces and the Maute extremist group.He said that until the Marawi residents are not allowed to go back to their place of work in the city, due to security concerns, they will remain jobless.“The PESOs in the region should be active in providing employment assistance to the displaced workers so that they will be able to provide for their families,” said Angara, vice chairman of the Senate labor committee.Since violence erupted on May 23, around 400,000 people have been displaced, with many living in host communities or in evacuation centers across Mindanao.Most of the displaced families took refuge in neighboring communities in Lanao Del Norte, Iligan and Cagayan De Oro.Angara has worked for the passage of Republic Act 10691 that strengthens the PESO Act to ensure that all provinces, municipalities, cities and other strategic areas throughout the country will have their respective public employment service offices.He lauded the Department of Labor and Employment for allocating P30 million for its Tulong Pangkabuhayan sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced (TUPAD) workers program, which now provides emergency employment assistance to nearly 2,300 displaced workers | ['Bernadette E. Tamayo'] | 2017-08-19 20:51:55+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/angara-urges-jobs-marawi-residents/345500/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Poe tops Radio Veritas’ ‘truth survey’ | Sen. Grace Poe has emerged as the top choice of Filipinos in the latest “truth survey” conducted by Catholic Church-run Radio Veritas that screened all five presidential candidates based on 10 qualities of a servant-leader.Poe was on the top spot in nine out of the 10 standards with an overall score of 59 percent.Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago came in second, consistently ranking second in half of the given traits with an overall percentage of 51 percent.Liberal Party standard-bearer Mar Roxas and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte tied for the third spot, each garnering 44 percent.Vice President Jejomar Binay took the last spot, obtaining an average score of 41 percent. He placed last when respondents were asked if he had the qualities of healing, persuasion, foresight, stewardship and commitment to the growth of the people.The candidates were ranked based on the qualities of listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of the people and building community.These criteria were adopted from the servant-leadership theoretical framework of Robert Greenleaf, the founder of the modern servant leadership movement and the Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership.The survey, conducted by the research department of Radio Veritas, interviewed 1,200 respondents from urban and rural areas nationwide from February to mid-March chosen on the basis of stratified random sampling with a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.AwarenessRadio Veritas consultant Clifford Sorita, a sociologist, said the respondents were asked to answer “yes” or “no” if they think a candidate has each of the 10 characteristics of a “servant-leader.”Poe consistently took the first spot in all the qualities except for “awareness,” where she placed last with 48.7 percent.She was the most favored presidential candidate with listening skills, empathy, healing, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of the people and community building.The “awareness” trait was defined as having sufficient knowledge and experience for the position, which reflects the programs he or she has implemented during his or her previous government post. Santiago got the nod of 75.1 percent of the respondents on this trait, Binay second with 65 percent, Roxas 61.7 percent, and Duterte 56 percent.For listening, three out of four or 76.5 percent of the respondents chose Poe, followed by Roxas with 54.3 percent, Santiago 53.9 percent, and Binay 50 percent. Duterte ranked last in this area.The longtime Davao City mayor, who has been under fire for his remarks about the rape and killing of 36-year-old Australian Jacqueline Hamill, also scored poorly in community building, or the capacity to unite various institutions of the society to collaborate in problem solving.Poe was the most emphatic among the presidential candidates with 70.8 percent, followed by Binay with 52.5 percent, Duterte 46.5 percent, Roxas 45 percent, and Santiago 40.9 percent.Not a popularity pollHalf of the respondents also believed that Poe has a “healing” quality. Only 29.2 percent and 24.5 percent of the respondents said Duterte and Binay, respectively, possess this characteristic.At a press conference Wednesday, the Radio Veritas president, Fr. Anton Pascual, emphasized that the study was not a popularity survey but an evaluation of the presidential candidates according to the characteristics of servant-leadership.“A servant leader, according to Greenleaf, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible,” Pascual said.Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo also said the results of the survey were not being endorsed by the Catholic Church.“These candidates were not ranked by the Church. The survey did not ask priests and nuns but ordinary people based on their perception,” he said.Pabillo said Radio Veritas initiated the survey to help Filipino voters examine the candidates in many aspects before they cast their ballots on May 9.Poe’s spokesperson Rex Gatchalian welcomed the survey results. “She is thankful to our public for appreciating the brand of service she puts in her work as a legislator and servant of the people,” he said. | ['Jocelyn R. Uy'] | 25/04/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/780632/poe-tops-radio-veritas-truth-survey | Inquirer | Credible |
KRIS AQUINO: CRYING ON THE OUTSIDE, LAUGHING ON THE INSIDE | MANILA, Philippines- In public, Kris Aquino has no qualms about letting people know that she feels guilty that she may be the reason that the TV show “The Buzz” was cancelled after more than 15 years.The Sunday show aired its final episode last April 5 with co-host Boy Abunda describing the cancellation as “very painful.”Kris revealed that she had asked ABS-CBN executives if it’s possible for her not to have to work on Sundays so she could spend more time with her sons and siblings. She believes that it was her request to take Sundays off that led the network to cancel the show.In private, however, Kris is telling all her friends that it feels very good to know that she is “very much valued” by ABS-CBN and that the network thinks that it is she that has made the show popular among its viewers.”I’m very relevant pa pala,” (still relevant) she said.Kris and Abunda still have their nightly late night talk show together, “Aquino and Abunda Tonight.”Inside sources at ABS-CBN said they overheard a conversation between Kris and network executives during which she reportedly said, “Don’t you think the talk show sounds much better if we renamed it, ‘Aquino Tonight?’ | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 25/04/2018 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2015/04/25/kris-aquino-crying-on-the-outside-laughing-on-the-inside/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
New suspect held in Nilo’s killing | The Nueva Ecija prosecutor’s office has dropped the murder charge it filed against Adel Roll Milan, 26, who was accused of killing Fr. Richmond Nilo on June 10 in Zaragoza town.On Friday, Milan said he was freed after authorities learned that police would charge a new suspect, identified only as “Omar or Arman,” allegedly a hired gun who was arrested by the police in Arayat town, Pampanga province.The Central Luzon police declined to comment on the new arrest.“I resemble the [new] suspect,” said Milan, after he saw the new suspect at the Nueva Ecija Justice Hall in Cabanatuan City shortly after he was released.Shot before MassNilo, parish priest of St. Vincent Ferrer in Zaragoza, was shot dead as he prepared for Mass at the Nuestra Señora de la Nieve chapel.He was killed in front of parishioners.On the eve of Nilo’s burial on June 15, police arrested Milan in San Isidro town after a witness identified him from the police rogue’s gallery.But Milan’s relatives and neighbors in the village of Malapit in San Isidro said police got the wrong man.They said Milan had been drinking with them from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on June 10.A barangay council member also vouched for Milan’s innocence.Milan had been detained at the Nueva Ecija police station here for 16 days.“I was innocent and I always prayed that they would find the culprit,” he said.No injusticePolice had described Milan as a drug suspect but he said he quit using drugs in 2015 and had been living with his grandmother.He said police kept asking him questions regarding the murder until he was formally charged by the prosecutor.“I kept saying I did not know anything [about the murder],” he said, adding that he was not harmed during interrogations.The information on the new suspect prompted the Diocese of Cabanatuan to ask for a briefing from the police.Fr. Noel Jetajobe, the diocese’s vicar general, said the Church received updates about the case through text messages and telephone calls but the investigation had yet to uncover the people who ordered Nilo’s death.Jetajobe said no member of Milan’s family had talked to the diocese about the case.“But we wouldn’t want to have double injustices in this case. We don’t want to prosecute innocents,” he said. | ['Armand Galang'] | 2016-12-19 22:31:56+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1005568/new-suspect-held-in-nilos-killing | Inquirer | Credible |
Power back in Bohol, but only briefly | There was only one way resident Jenalyn Castro would know if electricity had returned to her home — flick the switch.To her surprise, the light in her living room came to life, a sign that power was back.“I hope this continues,” said Castro. The first thing she did was charge her cellular phone.While electricity returned to Bohol on Friday, it was confined only to this capital city and only for several hours.Power had to be cut for at least six hours a day as supply fell sharply when geothermal plants in Leyte, the main source of electricity in Bohol, had to be temporarily shut down for repairs following the 6.5-magnitude quake that struck Leyte.In a statement, the Energy Development Corp. (EDC) said all its plants in Leyte were still not operating as an assessment of the extent of the damage was being done.It said that Unit 1 of Tongonan Geothermal Power Plant “may not be operational for some time due to cooling tower damage.”But one plant, Upper Mahiao, would be in operation in up to seven days, bringing 132 megawatts “back to the grid.”“We are still working to clear landslide debris,” said the EDC.In 10 days, the EDC said that at least 317 MW of power would be back to the grid.The Bohol Light Company Inc. (BLCI), the main power distributor in Tagbilaran City, tapped the Bohol Diesel Power Plant (BDPP) in the village of Dampas here for additional electricity.But the BDPP does not have the capacity to supply the province’s entire power needs.EDC said access to one of its geothermal plants, Mahanagdong, “remains difficult.”According to May Hope Arcenal, BLCI spokesperson, power demand in Bohol peaks at 80 MW.The province has three hydropower plants in three towns—Balihan, Loboc and Sevilla—with a combined capacity of less than 10 MW. Some areas in Tagbilaran City had power for only an hour.Arcenal said that mall owners and big establishments in the city used generator sets.The Bohol Electric Cooperative also started to ration electricity to consumers in Maribojoc and Calape towns on Friday night | ['Leo Udtohan'] | 2016-12-19 22:31:56+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/912148/power-back-in-bohol-but-only-briefly | Inquirer | Credible |
New BOC deputy chief takes oath | Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd has sworn into office Edward James Dy Buco as deputy commissioner of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) replacing Peter Manzano.Buco was a private lawyer prior to his appointment as Customs deputy commissioner but had served at the bureau’s provincial districts in various capacities for almost 12 years starting in 2002.He had served as Deputy Collector for Operations of the BOC’s Davao district from November 2012 to January 2014.Buco was also named officer-in-charge of the Davao district from April to June of 2013 and was chief of staff of the same district from November 2011 up to November 2012.Prior to his Davao assignment, he was assigned in Cebu City, where he was Deputy Collector for Administration at the Cebu Port and chief of its Auction and Cargo Disposal Committee. He was also the chief of the port’s legal division and accounting head of its bonds section.Buco was a managing partner of the Mosquera Dy Buco Law Office based in General Santos City and legal practitioner at the Dy Buco Law Office in San Jose, Antique.He was once a provincial board member representing the North District of Antique and had taught law at the Mindanao State University College of Law in General Santos City.Buco completed his law degree at the Ateneo de Manila University and his bachelor of arts degree at the West Visayas State College in Iloilo City. | ['The Manila Times'] | 2016-12-19 22:31:56+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/new-boc-deputy-chief-takes-oath-2/302672/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Mocha Uson Fires Back, Challenges Kris Aquino To Mud Wrestling | The word war between Kris Aquino and Mocha Uson is not going away anytime soon. In fact, it continues to escalate.Aquino challenged Uson to a hairpulling fight — a re-enactment or a movie scene involving the latter.It all started after Uson posted a video of Aquino’s father Ninoy, being kissed by two women. It was her way of getting back at critics of President Rodrigo Duterte for that kissing incident in South Korea.Well, not only did Uson accept the hair-pulling challenge. She wants something more. She said she is ready to face Aquino in a mudwrestling match at a time, date and venue of Aquino’s choosing.”We can have it in Los Angeles, California, or we can have it at the Philippine Arena. Just let me know and I’ll be there,” Uson said. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 05/06/2018 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2018/06/05/mocha-uson-fires-back-challenges-kris-aquino-to-mud-wrestling/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Lost at sea: ‘Thousands’ of dead migrants never identified | sometimes with tragic outcomes.And rescuing victims from the sea can make identification much harder because “bodies which have been taken out of the water have often started rotting,” a security official in Saint-Louis told AFP.In such cases, they are buried on the beach, he said.Across the globe, the number of migrants who have died at sea is “enormous” but the rate at which they are identified remains “very low,” said Jose Baraybar, a Paris-based forensic expert who works for the International Committee of the Red Cross and was addressing a meeting in Dakar.So local residents have teamed up to do their own investigations.“We discuss the disappeared, how to identify them from their clothes, watches, faces, identity papers,” Dieye told AFP, saying her village was working with people from another village near Dakar.Lucky charmsWhen two local boys died at sea in April, their relatives recognized them through the clothes and lucky charms they were wearing, Ndiebene-Gandiol’s mayor said.And in the neighboring village of Pilote-Bar, bracelets, and rings were found on corpses which helped with identification, according to Issa Wade, who heads another support group for the families of missing migrants.But it gets significantly harder when the deaths occur hundreds or even thousands of miles away.“The main issue is having information about the victims before they die,” explained Baraybar.“Without knowing who they were, if they were 1.80 meters tall, what they were wearing or whether they were wearing a ring or a bracelet, without having this information from the relatives, it is impossible.”The puzzle continues for forensic experts in places like Greece or Italy when bodies are found in the Mediterranean.In transit countries like Tunisia, “migrants conceal all information about themselves to avoid being sent back to their country” if arrested, said Moncef Hamdoun, who heads the forensic department at Charles-Nicolle hospital in Tunis.“We have a database for Tunisians,” but not for people from elsewhere, he said.And when bodies end up in the sea, pictures are of little use, he said. | [] | 30/08/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/08/30/lost-at-sea-thousands-of-dead-migrants-never-identified/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Actress Agot Isidro slammed Duterte “Hindi ka bipolar. You are a psychopath” | Netizens noticed the post of the actress Agot Isidro against President Duterte this week on her personal Facebook account.The actress who known for condemning extrajudicial killings and shaming women called the President of the Philippines a psychopath.Isidro slammed President Duterte after he dared the United States of America and European Union to withdraw the foreign aid for the Philippines.“Kung makapagsalita ka parang superpower na ang pilipinas” Agot said in her postShe believes that if the foreign aid withdrawn by the UN and EU, more Filipino would suffer hunger.“Mag isa ka nalang, wag kang mandamay. Hindi na nga nakakakain ang nakararami, gugutumin mo pa lalo” Agot added.Her post got thousands of reactions from the Netizens and her fans showed their support to the actress.On September 30, Agot also showed her support against the plan of the congress to play the alleged private video of Senator De Lima and Ronnie Dayan in public.Agot Isidro is currently works on FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano as Verna Syquia-Tuazon. | ['View All Posts Pinoytrending'] | 2016-10-09 07:40:48+08:00 | https://pinoytrending.altervista.org/actress-agot-isidro-slammed-duterte/ | Pinoytrending Altervista | Suspicious |
Duterte critics desperately rally behind the LIAR Arturo Lascanas | The man of the hour at the moment is retired police officer Arturo Lascanas who went public claiming that he was one of the ringleaders of secret “salvaging” operations and alleging that these were ordered by then Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte himself. “Salvaging” is a Filipino term used to refer to summary executions often supposedly perpetrated by police and military personnel.According to a Reuters report, “Lascanas asserted that the Davao death squad was no myth…”You don’t say.Lascanas is basically stating something most Davaoenos already know. For that matter, even if what Lascanas is saying about Duterte is true, wasn’t what he is alleging the very reason Filipinos came out in droves to catapult Duterte to the presidency to begin with?The truth is, Duterte represents everything about what 30 years of Yellow-branded governance failed to do — embed the rule of law across the land. Filipinos elected Duterte president warts and all — applying in their choice in 2016 full knowledge of the strong possibility that he may have routinely used “expeditious” means to achieve much of what he is celebrated for in Davao.Duterte’s critics still don’t get it. Painting Duterte as a “murderer” will not put a dent on his popularity. More importantly, the way they are going about it remains the same — trial-by-media. The cousin of this technique, trial-by-congressional-inquiry is probably coming soon. Lascanas, after all, as today’s top newsmaker is simply too juicy an opportunity for the Philippines’ publicity-starved members of Congress to resist.The million-dollar question, of course is around whether this new outrage fad can be milked to its full potential and ultimately produce an impeachment initiative against Duterte.Screams a recent ABS-CBN News headline: Can Duterte be impeached for allegations on DDS?Time and political interests will tell.But in making this recent bold allegation, Lascanas had inadvertently proven that he is a liar. Back in 2016, Lascanas issued an equally bold and categorical claim, that the so-called Davao Death Squad (DDS) he supposedly led to implement these killings “does not exist”…“Wala pong Davao Death Squad, your honor. Media hype lang yan.” Lascanas said.In the Philippines, however, liars routinely become celebrity witnesses on the back of political rivals desperate for an angle. It is a testament to the reality that justice in the Philippines is not really about finding the truth. It is about finding the correct truth. | ['Oratio Imperata'] | 2017-02-20 11:34:24+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2017/02/duterte-critics-desperately-rally-behind-liar-arturo-lascanas/ | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
44 Reasons Why Noynoy Cannot be Thrown into Prison | The internet is awash with articles detailing former president Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Cojuangco Aquino III’s crimes against the very people he is wont to sarcastically address as his “boss”. Yet despite mounting calls for justice, getting this criminally negligent and apathetic traitor behind bars just won’t happen – at least not in our lifetime. Welcome to Philippine Justice 101, where we unravel how elusive justice is in the land of dysfunctional zombies. Here folks are 44 reasons why Noynoy cannot be thrown into prison:Ayaw ni sis e. Kapal ng mukha Kris Aquino requested President Rody Duterte not to. Justice in the Philippines is exactly what it is: just ice that so easily melts under our hot tropical banana republic sun. Insanity can always be his best excuse. How dare we throw royal blood into prison? Remember, he is the anointed offspring (special child) of a “national hero” and a “holy saint”. He was the best president ever! Manila Times’ Rigoberto Tiglao might beg to differ though. He’s too good at pointing fingers at anyone but himself. A loveless life is punishment enough. Filipinos will easily forget (possible mental side-effect of eating pag-pag). The Ombudsman is beholden to the color Yellow. The empire (Leni and Leila) might strike back. Netizens have already vented their outrage. Pwede na yon. Filipinos are a very forgiving people. Recall how Erap almost got re-elected as president after being ousted. Let’s rather thank Noynoy for saving us from becoming the laughing stock of the world back in 2010. He has a spotlessly clean track record: Imagine, 9 years as congressman + 3 years as senator = 0 bills passed. We need to be kind to animals. Talagang hayop ka Noynoy; “stand down” kahit na nagmamakaawa na mga sundalo mo? The Yellows can always revise history (the worst villain can be turned into a national hero). A few decades later, who knows – Rizal (Luneta) Park might be renamed Noynoy Aquino Park. Oligarchy-backed Yellow media and the Catholic church will fight tooth and nail to defend him. Noynoy did us a huge favor: He woke the entire nation up from the Yellow EDSA spell. Salamat Noynoy. He deserves the Nobel peace prize (by sleeping with the enemy while concocting their BBL). That’s on top of his “no bill” prize. He defended our country using his high-caliber mouth by branding Chinese leaders with the worst possible label: Hitler’s Nazis. He does not know how to apologize – So what’s the use? We have been told to stop looking back at the past – It’s time to MOVE ON. His unforgettable smile (that “nakauto na naman tayo” grin) says he was only joking all along. Kris might go mad if he loses her brother. And Philippine showbiz can’t afford it. He never really meant any harm (just honest mistakes brought about by sheer ignorance, totally unintended). Filipinos fully aware of his incompetence voted for reluctant Noynoy to lead the country; so Filipinos bear the greater guilt! He’s too damn rich and famous to be imprisoned. With thousands of more pressing unsolved cases in the judiciary pipeline, it will take a hundred years till Noynoy’s case gets its day in court. Lawyers out to file cases against Noynoy are equally incompetent. EJK (with the batman symbol on a piece of cardboard) is the more cost-effective method. There are issues of far greater relevance in the country than “vengeance”. Nobody really cares. It’s showbiz that matters, including Manny’s next fight. He sacrificed so much (like his crown of hair) to serve one of the most stressful people to manage on earth. Give him a break. Some kind of attitude change or positive thinking therapy might work for such a hopeless lot like Pinoys: Let’s just tell ourselves “better luck nalang next time”. It’s not the president’s fault; it’s his appointees’. His partners (America’s CIA, aka his real boss) won’t allow it. And who can defy America? He is a chain smoker. More valuable humans (currently in prison) might get lung cancer by sharing quarters with him. Filipino taxpayer’s hard-earned money is better off being spent on something of value, rather than running after this lost cause of a pathetic loser. Justice will not bring pan de sal on Mang Juan’s table; it will only make you feel good for a few fleeting seconds (momentary high). At the rate he’s aging, he’ll be dead sooner than we think anyway. Why waste the effort? He’s so good at hiding these days. It might be too difficult to catch him. The idea of “politicians going to prison” is just a big show (media circus). They always eventually get pardoned anyway. Trillanes, Honasan, and Erap can attest to that. He deserves death (Romanian style like this), not imprisonment. Let’s wait till the death penalty bill gets passed first. The families of victims of the Mamasapano tragedy have already been well compensated. PNoy (the quintessential Filipino) was worth dying for – signed with the elite blood flowing out of our mutilated and desecrated bodies. | ['Oratio Imperata'] | 04/02/2017 0:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2017/02/44-reasons-noynoy-cannot-thrown-prison/#comments | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
P470-M projects for best performing LGUs | senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs) or indigenous peoples (IPs). One of the PCF projects in Concepcion town, Iloilo province is a P3-million Senior Citizen and PWD Center.The PCF can also be used to augment LGUs in completing local road projects.The SGLG awards LGUs with good performance in fiscal management, basic social services, disaster preparedness, business-friendly climate, and peace and order. | [] | 07/11/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/11/07/p470-m-projects-for-best-performing-lgus/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Pinoys would have to make do with lunar eclipse | Filipinos may have missed the first total solar eclipse that unfolded from coast to coast of the United States in nearly a century, but they will witness another celestial spectacle on Jan. 31 next year — a lunar eclipse called a full “blood moon.”Lunar eclipses are usually characterized by the moon or a portion of it turning reddish, as the sun, Earth and full moon align or nearly align, earning the phenomenon the name blood moon.The Philippines will be missing out on this year’s biggest astronomical event — a total solar eclipse — but skywatchers can tune in to live video streams and images of the event online, courtesy of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa).The program for the total solar eclipse on Aug. 21 will start at noontime Eastern daylight time (EDT), starting with a “preview show” hosted from Charleston, South Carolina, according to the Nasa website (www.nasa.gov).Images taken by 11 spacecraft—including three Nasa aircraft, 50 high-altitude balloons and astronauts aboard the International Space Station—will also be uploaded to the website before, during and after the eclipse.All of North America will be able to view the eclipse, but viewers in other parts of the world, such as the Philippines, where the eclipse will not be visible, can monitor the Nasa website’s photo galleries and live video feeds.The video feeds may also be viewed on Nasa’s social media accounts including on Facebook, Twitter, Twitch TV, Ustream and YouTube.The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), in its astronomical diary for August, said the solar eclipse would happen starting 11:46 p.m. Philippine Standard Time on Aug. 21 (Monday).The eclipse will be visible in Hawaii, the Americas except southern parts of South America, westernmost Europe and West Africa, Pagasa said.After weeks of anticipation, the sight of the moon’s shadow passing directly in front of the sun, blotting out all but the halo-like solar corona, will draw one of the largest audiences in human history, experts say.Smashing recordsWhen those watching via social and broadcast media are included, the spectacle will likely smash records.Some 12 million people live in the 113-kilometer-wide, 4,000-km-long zone in the United States where the total eclipse will appear on Monday. Millions of others have traveled to spots along the route to bask in its full glory.Murphy, North Carolina, in the Smoky Mountains about two hours north of Atlanta, is among hundreds of small towns that are preparing for a huge influx of visitors.“The weather forecast for Monday is beautiful, probably not a cloud in the sky all day,” said Dave Vanderlaan, 61, a retired landscaper.“We’re busy, but tomorrow anybody in Atlanta who says they want to see total, they’re going to come up to this area, so it could be crazy,” Vanderlaan added.The phenomenon will first appear at 10:15 a.m. Pacific daylight time (1715 GMT) near Depoe Bay, Oregon. Some 94 minutes later, at 2:49 p.m. EDT (1849 GMT), totality will take its final bow near Charleston, South Carolina.1918 spectacleThe last time such a spectacle unfolded from the Pacific to the Atlantic coast was in 1918. The last total eclipse seen anywhere in the United States took place in 1979.In Depoe Bay, a town of about 1,500 people, clear skies on Sunday raised hopes that the corona would be visible and not obscured by coastal haze or cloud.Lisa Black, from Vancouver, Canada, said she and her party planned to have breakfast on the beach and be ready with their glasses.“And, yeah, it will be cool to be able to look out at the ocean and just have the openness when it goes totally dark,” she said.For millions of others who can’t get there, a partial eclipse of the sun will appear throughout North America if there is no local cloud cover.Eclipse chaserPerhaps never before have so many people had the opportunity to see a total eclipse, said Michael Zeiler, a self-described “eclipse chaser” who on Monday would notch his ninth time seeing “totality.”Weeks of publicity have fanned excitement, he said, and might have persuaded many families to make last-minute plans for a road trip to the zone.Zeiler, who runs GreatAmericanEclipse.com, a website devoted to the event, estimates that up to 7.4 million people will travel to the zone to observe the total eclipse, which takes place in the peak vacation month of August.Many people have trekked to remote national forests and parks of Oregon, Idaho and Wyoming, while others have bought tickets to watch the show en masse in a Carbondale, Illinois, football stadium, a two-hour drive southeast of St. Louis.In South Carolina, Charleston County’s more than 16,000 hotel rooms are booked, tourism officials say. Police expect up to 100,000 visitors to the area on Monday.Those who live along the path, which cuts through a few population centers like Kansas City and Nashville, Tennessee, can simply walk out their homes and look skyward.Avoid eye damageFor all but the couple of minutes of totality, observers must wear specially designed solar-safe sunglasses or filters to avoid severe eye damage. It is never safe to gaze directly at a partial eclipse with the naked eye.Unlike many other astronomical events, such as comets and meteor showers, that often fail to live up to their hype, a total eclipse is nearly a sure thing, so long as the weather cooperates, experts say. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 2016-11-08 20:32:41+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/924565/pinoys-would-have-to-make-do-with-lunar-eclipse | Inquirer | Credible |
PH, US set talks on ‘reduced’ war games | SECURITY officials are set to discuss before the Mutual Defense Board-Security Engagement Board (MDB-SEB) a “reduced” number of joint exercises between the Philippines and the US that was recently approved by President Rodrigo Duterte, a Defense official disclosed on Tuesday.Arsenio Andolong, director of the Public Affairs Service of the Department of National Defense (DND), said Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has recommended the reduction of war games to fewer than 10.Before, according to Andolong, there had been about 28 exercises every year but the previous administration had reduced it to about 13.“So now with the new administration, it will come down to about half of that, so it would be half a dozen, There is no definite figure yet because it is still being discussed,” he said.Technically, Andolong added, there were more exercises terminated during the time of then-president Benigno Aquino 3rd than under the Duterte administration.A source said this was not disclosed because the Aquino administration was hiding it from the “enemy.”Lorenzana said on Monday that the President approved his Cabinet’s recommendations to continue implementation of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) and some joint exercises between the Philippines and the US.Among others that would be terminated are naval exercises called Philippines Amphibious Landing Exercise (Phiblex) and Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (Carat).The Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder), a signature element of the Philippine-US alliance, and others will continue but they will be refocused on non-traditional operations such as Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HADR) and counter-terrorism, Andolong said.There will also be some aspects of anti-narcotics operation, he added.MDB-SEB is a series of defense and security-related meetings held each year between the Philippines and the United States.The meetings foster strong relationships between the Philippines and the US military and improve their abilities to work together on mutual defense and security that includes HADR, cyber-security and anti-terrorism.When asked if the US is insisting on retaining Phiblex and Carat, Andolong said, “We will have to tell them that that is not the direction that we want to take because the President has already specified what he wants and Ithink that he was very vocal about that. If they want to be treated as allies, they should listen to what our needs are and what they also require.” | ['Fernan Marasigan'] | 2016-11-08 20:32:41+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/ph-us-set-talks-reduced-war-games-2/295474/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Thinking through the Philippines' future ties with the US and China | I don’t believe a-laced outburst by Pres. Duterte will lead to a “complete souring of ties between PHL and USA". That is NOT how the world works. That is not how to severe international relations and long-standing affiliation.To make reality the so-called “cutting the invisible umbilical cord” with the US will take more than cuss words and crass attitude. However, If he decides to declare war against the US at the same time have a surrogate country take over her role as our partner would make Duterte’s plan more likely and believable. As it is, such thinking is hard to fathom for lack of concrete basis at this time.Granting that the mutual defense treaty between the two countries doesn’t guarantee anything on our part, we still have all the reason to be confident that the US will never allow China to dominate and control the flow of navigation in the South China Sea. While she takes no position on the territorial disputes, she remains a major player in the region. That alone should give us confidence that we have the US on our side. The Americans don’t need to “risk their assess” to defend anyone’s claim because they will not be standing alone opposite against China, if push comes to shove, practically all countries around the disputed area oppose China’s illegal claim to it.On the issue of the Phil. “befriending China”. It’s another ‘punch to the moon’ () theory that requires further formulation to be believed. Everybody knows we have a court decision against China on her illegal claims in the South China Sea. Are we going to withdraw our claims just to appease Beijing and convert her into our friend? I don’t think so.Thinking-out-of-the-box does not mean you should be out of your mind at the same time. There is no place forbehavior in an ever evolving and changing world.Finally, it is not a question of whether or not Filipinos will be better off letting go of America. The question is, if true, what is the real agenda behind such thinking?-----------------------This is a GRP Featured Comment. Join the discussion | [] | 2016-07-28 23:38:11+08:00 | https://grpshorts.blogspot.com/2016/09/thinking-through-philippines-future.html | GRPundit | Suspicious |
15 funniest photoshopped portrait of the Presidents | The netizens gone wild again especially those who are masters in photoshop after a photo of President Duterte with the four past presidents surfaced on the internet.We got the best and funniest versions from different photoshop masters in one collection from being a cartoon character to the most creative insults.Here are the 15 edited photos of the executive officers. Check it out below!What can you say abou this? Something to add? Leave your comments below! | [] | 2016-07-28 23:38:11+08:00 | http://duterte.today/15-funny-photoshopped-president/ | Duterte Daily Stories | Suspicious |
Release 13th month pay, DOLE 13 appeals to employers | With just three days before Christmas, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE 13) Regional Director Evelyn R. Ramos reiterated her call for private employers to release their workers’ 13th month pay.The official issued the appeal during the Regional Coordinating Committee (RCC) meeting and its last media briefing for this year.She renewed the call for employers to immediately release their workers’ 13month pay after learning that there were still some who have yet to comply with general labor standard.“We appeal to them to pay their employees and workers now,” stressed the DOLE 13 official.In the same forum, the official ordered the region’s legal department, including those in the provincial and city labor offices, to conduct an investigation on employers who will not comply with the law.Ramos said all employers are mandated by law to pay their workers their 13th month pay on or before December 24, regardless of the nature of their employment and irrespective of the methods by which their wages are paid, provided they worked for at least one month during a calendar year.The Labor Code provides that every covered employer is required to make a report of compliance with the law to the nearest DOLE regional office not later than January 15 of each year.The 13th month pay is defined to mean one-twelfth (1/12) of the basic salary of an employee within a calendar year, she said. | [] | 21/12/2016 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2016/12/21/release-13th-month-pay-dole-13-appeals-to-employers/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
MEXICANS SAW A DIFFERENT SUPERMOON | From California to Vermont, Americans were treated Sunday to a once-in-a-blue-moon natural phenomenon : a lunar exclipse featuring a super, blood-red moon.Facebook, Twitter and Instagram were immediately filled with moon photos taken by proud netizens — photos that will remain on the Internet in perpetuity.But south of the U.S. border, Mexicans were reporting a different heavenly sighting — that of an image of Donald Trump smacked in the center of the super moon.Was this a sign from God, or a billionaire’s manipulation of nature?We are investigating reports that Trump paid big bucks to have his image projected on the moon through laser technology, as a way to re-ignite his war on Mexicans and immigrants. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 28/09/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2015/09/28/mexicans-saw-a-different-supermoon/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Amen: A Black Nazarene devotion that leads to healing | year-old Armin “Amen” Macalagay yesterday joined the crowd of thousands who braved the blazing heat of the sun to join the procession of replicas of the Black Nazarene from the different parts of the country around the Quiapo area in Manila.Macalagay, a retired seaman, is keeping four replicas of the Black Nazarene in his humble abode in Tondo, Manila. He said his devotion came naturally as he was from a family of devotees.He said he earned his nickname “Amen” because he was a sickly kid who later became fit enough to join the crowd attempting to touch the image of the Black Nazarene.“Nagsimula ako bilang mamamasan nung 17 years old ako, tapos hanggang sa nakapagtrabaho na ako bilang seaman, dun na lumalim ang kaalaman ko dahil kung saan saan ako nakapunta, katulad sa Jerusalem,” he said.He said he gave up all the luxury he had in order to purchase the custom-made replicas from Paete, Laguna.The first Nazareno he bought was “Senyor Bulilit,” who is now 51 years old. In 2012, he bought “Boss,” a 10 feet replica, which he said is miraculous.“Tinamaan ako ng sakit na pneumonia, 50/50 na ako. Sa kanya lang nagdasal ang pamilya ko, ‘yung luha niya, pinahid ko lang sa akin, gumaling ako,” Macalagay narrated.Macalagay said “Bossing” also healed countless others.“Ang di ko makakalimutan, ‘yung bedridden na, dahil dina-dialysis. Lumapit sa amin ang pamilya at dahil din sa kanya ay gumaling,” he said. “Sa aming pamilya rin, walang may sakit kaya mabuti na rin kaysa may pera pero napupunta lang sa pagpapagamot.”Macalagay also bought two other replicas, which they dubbed “Bossing” and a smaller one called ‘Andas.’He said “Andas” was requested by the younger members of Anak ng Diyos, Ama Sa Langit (ANDAS), which he founded in 2012, and now has different chapters in the country.“Gusto nung mga bata na may bubuhatin din sila kaya pinasadya naming itong maliit,” he said.Macalagay said it is important to start training the youth so that they will have someone to pass on the devotion.“Malaking bagay na nagagabayan sila, para lumalaki sila, natututo. Kasi ngayon, ‘yung mga mamamasan, malayo na sa dati. Nandiyan na ‘yung nag-aaway away kaya kailangan talaga may patnubay,” he said. “Mahirap din kasing mangako pero hanggang kaya ng katawan ko, ipagpapatuloy ko itong debosyon na ito.”The Manila Police District placed the crowd estimate at 80,000 at the beginning of the procession at 2 p.m. | [] | 07/01/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/01/07/amen-a-black-nazarene-devotion-that-leads-to-healing/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Donald Trump Names Michele Bachmann His Secretary Of State | Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is a step ahead of his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.While Clinton is busy putting together her transition team in preparation for her impending move into The White House, Trump is already naming members of his cabinet. His first appointee? Former Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann.Trump named the Tea Party darling his Secretary of State.Bachmann has confirmed the appointment telling reporters that Trump has his ear on foreign policy.In a Minnesota fundraiser for Trump on Saturday, Bachmann revealed that she is advising the Republican candidate on foreign policy.The news came as huge disappointment for former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin who had desperately wanted the State Secretary job. Among Palin’s foreign policy expertise is the fact that she can see Russia from her backyard. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 21/08/2016 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2016/08/21/donald-trump-names-michele-bachmann-his-secretary-of-state/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
We need to help develop true thinking Pinoys rather than mere following Pinoys | My colleague Paul Farol, the other day, pointed out that the best way to combat the Yellowtards’ troll-like social media behaviour and style of “debate” is “to take the game to where the yellows cannot follow.”It seems some key social media personalities within the so-called “die-hard Duterte supporters” (DDS) clique have failed to do that and, instead, engaged the enemy at the wrong level thereby allowing themselves to be dragged into enemy turf. Rather than uplift the quality of the debate and encourage the broader community to join them at this elevated intellectual level, they merely contributed to the intellectual bankruptcy of Philippine political discourse and carried on a tradition of personality-focused and, ultimately, unproductive “debate”.This, it seems, is where the noisiest chatter of the Philippines’ political discourse is at the moment and it is a colossal waste of opportunity considering all of the important things of true national consequence happening at the moment. Worse, the noise it is generating and the big red targets for Opposition attack it is creating within the DDS community may even be negating a lot of the progress and wins the government of President Rodrigo Duterte is racking up.Indeed, if we observe some of the social media and blog posts recently fielded by key Opposition “influencers”, much of the messages they concentrate their efforts on is around taking potshots at these DDS personalities even as they run thin on intellectual ammo to back more substantial arguments against the strategic direction Duterte has steered the country towards and the tactical steps he is taking to execute on that strategy.Some of these DDS personalities, in response, also step up their defensive positions against these low-level attacks from these Opposition bottom-feeders and expend inordinate amounts of energy on the small gains (if any) that defending these trivial positions yield. As a result, more important objectives in the messaging battle are dropped in favour of what are increasingly becoming low-value objectives.Messaging is very important to a government that is working against an entenched status quo and taking unconventional steps towards unprecedented strategic objectives. The confused and conflicted communications machine of the Duterte government and the dysfunction within the social media cliques of free-agent influence peddlers that surround it is clearly damaging the administration. Ultimately, it will have to be the submerged part of the proverbial iceberg — the millions of ordinary followers and commentators who make up the true support base of the Duterte government — who will have to step up and decide how best to serve a reality fix to the inflated egos that “lead” their thinking.Just like a democratic government, social media leaders are created by popular vote in the form of Likes, Retweets, and Follows. As such, social media leaders too mirror the character of the Philippines’ social media community. Filipinos will have to decide if the character of their social media leaders are ones that they deem worthy of being regarded as models of their collective character much the same way as they continuously evaluate their democratically-elected political leadership.The top social media leaders too will have to step back, engage in a bit of introspection and ask themselves: What am I really doing here? Am I encouraging my followers to think? Or am I merely telling them to follow? The answer to those questions may prove to be quite confronting. | ['Oratio Imperata'] | 2017-11-08 22:00:57+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2017/11/need-help-develop-true-thinking-pinoys-rather-mere-following-pinoys/#comments | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
Obituary: Journalist Christine Herrera, 49 | Journalist Christine Herrera, 49, will be laid to rest today, Sunday, at the Heritage Park in Taguig.A native of Odiongan, Romblon, Herrera is survived by her husband, Lito, their daughters Nikki and Abby, son-in-law Jaybee Baraquel, and grandson Malcolm.A former reporter of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Herrera died of cardiac aneurysm last Nov. 19, while on vacation with friends in Thailand.Newspaper editor Jullie Yap-Daza, in an opinion piece, called Herrera “a warrior masquerading as a reporter. A fighter. A subversive.”“She saw only black and white, never gray. She was driven by hunger, the hunger for news and to tell the story well, even if it could mean another libel suit. She lived for her scoops, the deadline kept her going,” Daza wrote of Herrera.Herrera wrote investigative reports, including an Inquirer series in 1998 in which former First Lady Imelda Marcos acknowledged for the first time that her late husband owned a large amount of the country’s wealth.Herrera also testified in the Senate impeachment trial of then President Joseph Estrada in 2000, after she and a colleague exposed the alleged illegal wiretapping of senator-judges by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force using paid assets at a telecommunications firm.Herrera endured multiple libel suits while she was reporting for the Inquirer and later, for other newspapers.Herrera and a colleague, along with the Inquirer editors, were slapped with a libel case in 1995 in connection with a story on the Vizconde massacre.She also faced down a contempt threat from lawmakers in 2015, after she refused to reveal the sources for her newspaper report that House members received a P440-million bribe to vote in favor of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law.Herrera was among the first winners of the Luis R. Prieto Journalism Award in 1996 for her story on Melinda de Vera, a girl who for the first 16 years of her life dwelled with her mother and niece in a kariton of wooden tomato crates in Manila.The award cited Herrera “for excellence in news/feature writing.”Before joining the Inquirer, Herrera worked for the now-defunct Philippine Daily Globe and two community papers in Cebu, Newstime Daily and Sun Star. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 27/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/947647/journalist-christine-herrera-49 | Inquirer | Credible |
Sereno ouster worries UN expert; he’s misinformed, says Palace | A UN human rights expert has expressed grave concern about the country’s judicial independence following the dismissal of Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno last month, saying her ouster sent a “chilling message” to other members of the judiciary and could lead to the “deterioration of the rule of law.”In an interview with reporters at Manila Polo Club in Makati City late on Thursday afternoon, Diego Garcia-Sayan, UN special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, said that based on his observations, the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law in the Philippines were being “liquidated” following President Duterte’s public attacks against Sereno and the filing of the quo warranto petition against her.SC decisionOn May 11, the Supreme Court voted 8-6 to remove Sereno as Chief Justice, saying she had failed an “integrity test” for not filing some of her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth when she was being considered for the post in 2010.“The decision of the Supreme Court was issued two days after the President of the Philippines publicly threatened the Chief Justice by saying that she was his enemy and that she should be removed from her job or resign,” Garcia-Sayan said.‘Derogatory language’On April 13, Mr. Duterte called the Chief Justice “ignorant,” “dumb” and a “coward” after recalling how Sereno had called on judges, whom the President had publicly declared to be involved in illegal drug activities, not to surrender to authorities unless arrest warrants were issued against them.The President was quoted as saying of Sereno: “You really should be removed. You should have been removed way before. You are dumb. Your mother is a whore. Give way. If I were you, I will resign.”“The use of such derogatory language against the highest-ranking magistrate in the country sends a clear message to all judges of the Philippines: in the so-called war on drugs, you’re either with me or against me,” the UN expert said.Palace points to CJ colleaguesGarcia-Sayan called for the reversal of the Supreme Court decision that ousted Sereno and for the continuation of the impeachment process to address questions about the validity of her appointment.On Friday, Malacañang said it was unfortunate that Garcia-Sayan had been “misinformed” about Sereno’s case, with presidential spokesperson Harry Roque saying that “the President’s dislike of the ousted Chief Justice [was] not an attack [on] the judiciary or an affront to judicial independence.”The President, he added, recognized and respected the independence of the Supreme Court, as well as the separation of powers among the three branches of government.“It [was] ex-CJ Sereno’s colleagues, associate justices known for their independence and unassailable integrity, who voted for her to be ousted,” Roque said.Academic visitGarcia-Sayan, who said he was in the country for an “academic visit,” maintained that he was not meddling in the country’s internal affairs but felt “morally [and] ethically obliged” to speak about the situation in the country because of his job as a UN rapporteur.There are international standards pertaining to judicial independence that must be complied with by the world community, he added.Appointed UN special rapporteur in 2016, Garcia-Sayan was Peru’s former foreign and justice minister during his country’s transition to democracy following the ouster of longtime President Alberto Fujimori.Checks and balancesHe is currently a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands, and of the Washington-based think tank Inter-American Dialogue.Garcia-Sayan warned that based on his experiences as a Latin American and as UN rapporteur, interference in judicial independence would result in the degradation of the principle of checks and balances in the government and ultimately lead to authoritarian rule.“Checks and balances is not a question of lawyers and academia; it is a question of the daily democratic rights of society,” he said.The UN expert said he had relayed his concerns to the Philippine government and would continue following up events related to this sensitive matter. | ['Dj Yap', 'Jerome Aning'] | 27/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/996711/sereno-ouster-worries-un-expert-hes-misinformed-says-palace | Inquirer | Credible |
SAN FRANCISCO’S GAY DISTRICT 8 ELECTIONS IS ONE TO WATCH | The electoral contest for San Francisco’s District 8 county supervisor slut, err slot, is pretty much decided in favor of incumbent Scott Wiener. Well, until today, when a write-in campaign was launched by Latina lesbian comedian Marga Gomez.The campaign is going viral and is gaining widespread support from the LGBT community which is not happy about Wiener’s policies and initiatives which many consider to be more pro-business than pro-LGBT.Supporters of Gomez will hold a vigil rally from 6 to 9 pm on October 30 in front of Hechos restaurant on Market Street while Wiener and Mayor Ed Lee host a party celebration on Castro and 18th Streets following a ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the Castro Street Improvement Project.Never has a write-in candidate won an election, but Gomez could make this a Guinness World Record, and it will be a feather in the cap of the LGBT community.Go vote on November 4. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 27/10/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2014/10/27/san-franciscos-gay-district-8-elections-is-one-to-watch/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Filipinos can only keep romanticizing about what Singapore has succeeded at DOING | The year 2015 was both a significant marker in the history of our Southeast Asian neighbor Singapore. It was the year of both the fiftieth anniversary of its founding as a nation (August 9), and the year Lee Kuan Yew (LKY), widely considered its founding father, died (March 23).Therefore, starting this year, 2016, Singapore is now on what is, hopefully, its next half-century and beyond of continuing prosperity and uninterrupted status as a developed nation.In 2015, the book If the Philippines had a Lee Kuan Yew , by Jose Leviste Jr., came out. It is a collection of articles and discourses, about Singapore and LKY, from, as written, “some of the brightest in our country, the literati of our nation.” Among the writers are familiar names like Carmen Pedrosa, Maria Ressa, Teddy Locsin Jr., Boo Chanco, Randy David, Ramon Farolan, etc.A lot of them are journalists. Think about that for a second…Leviste, in his prologue, cites his principal goal in the book as, “to initiate a discussion and a debate over the right way to lead and move forward a people in an archipelagic nation like the Philippines…”. I have read the book and hoped to find some new insight into what made Singapore so successful. My take-away from it instead was the following:Filipinos’ supposedly brightest literati have little to no new insight whatsoever to add to what is already known about Singapore.The overarching mood of the book is that the articles and discourses are generally retrospective in nature. Instead, the “what if” mind exercise that was supposed to be stimulated by the book has merely resulted in redundant information.A fruitful and relevant discussion on what the Philippines needs to improve must necessarily begin with acknowledgement and acceptance of its current situation; the Philippines’ wretchedness is not only in plain sight, it runs deep from our institutions, to the very core of our culture as a people. A good discussion, at the risk of oversimplifying things, is basically a gap analysis. You define a current state (state A), how things are, and then you define a future state (state B), how things should be. Finally one defines all that is needed to get from state A to state B: processes, people, policies, things that need to be changed, etc.Leviste, the author, repeatedly emphasizes LKY’s “strong, competent, disciplined, decisive, and principled leadership”. Unfortunately, the actions that underlay his leadership, done in the Philippine setting, will get one branded a despot or a dictator, perhaps even a fascist (the correct use of this word is another matter).At its core, LKY’s leadership is simply an iron fist. The equivalent term in the Philippine setting is kamay na bakal, complete with any unpleasant implications. Yet it is also one that is tempered with vision, foresight, attention to detail, and pragmatism – things that are all regarded with disdain by an emo people. It pays to remember that LKY was a staunch critic of two things that Filipinos hold dear but pervert: democracy, and freedom of the press.It remains an unresolved inconsistency, especially among our “elite”, that while they continue romanticizing about and admiring what LKY has done in his own country, they would also demonize and shun anyone who adopts such qualities and adapts them to the local setting. It also remains an issue that potentially beneficial foreign ideas and influences are continuously misapplied here.A lot of the contributors to the book are from the media, considered to be among the “thought leaders” and “opinion shapers” in the Philippines. As more and more people are starting to realize, however, corporate media has failed the people and are part of the problem. These are the very same people who will always quote what LKY said about the Marcoses, and yet continue to ignore and disregard what he said about the Philippine press.The issue that the local media faces is merely indicative of one that is found in the overall Filipino society: an inability to reflect on, much less accept, its flaws. Filipino creativity and imagination, while praised by LKY through those who came to Singapore to work, have not been able to find their way into imagining what a future Philippines is supposed to be; Filipinos are stuck at decrying what it never must be again. Perhaps, most crippling of all, is the Filipinos’ inability to accept, prepare for, and manage change.The future, along with its uncertainty, is an uncomfortable topic. Those who thrive are the ones who embrace uncertainty and are flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances. Those who fall behind are the ones who cling to the past to define their future.It is up to Filipinos to decide which one they want to be. Until then, they can only gawk at their prosperous neighbor with wide-eyed glee, and wait for the guava that may never fall from the tree.[Photo courtesy: Almighty E-Biz] | [] | 2016-08-09 10:41:35+00:00 | https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2016/08/filipinos-can-keep-romanticizing-singapore-succeeded/ | Get Real Philippines | Suspicious |
Even without Lopez, gov’t to implement mining laws fairly, says DOF chief | The rejection of Gina Lopez’s appointment as environment secretary will allow the government to implement mining laws fairly and in accordance with due process, the head of the Duterte administration’s economic team said on Thursday.“I have to say this: ‘I fully support her [Lopez’s] actions to make sure that the rules are followed. And I’m fully supportive of closing mines that are noncompliant,’” Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III told reporters on the sidelines of Asian Development Bank’s 50th annual meeting.“However, there are laws that govern the relations of mines with the government. And those laws and regulations have to be followed and they cannot be ignored,” he said.Lopez in February ordered the closure of 23 mining operations as well as the suspension of five others in 10 provinces. A week later, she ordered the cancellation of 75 mineral production sharing agreements entered into by the government with mining companies.Affected companies had complained that the orders of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) were issued without due process, although Lopez had claimed that the agency had informed them of the audits.The interagency Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC), cochaired by the finance and environment secretaries, is undertaking a three-month review of Lopez’s orders, on top of the review of all other mining contracts across the country as mandated under the law.Dominguez, referring to Lopez, said: “You may not like them [laws and regulations], but you have to follow them because if you don’t follow, what happens is that these [mining companies] will go to court, and the court will read the rules within the complaint and say, ‘you did not follow the rules’ so [the mines] will open again. So all that effort is for naught.”Company risk“Plus, you take a risk that these [mines that] were closed outside of the rules and the due process will sue us. And you know, as the guy who has to worry about money, I’m really worried because these things involve enormous amounts of money. So we want to make sure that the laws are implemented fairly and in accordance with due process, that’s all. That’s nothing new,” Dominguez said.The government will move forward with a second review of the country’s mines despite the removal of Lopez as environment secretary, a finance official said on Thursday.The MICC ordered a review in February of the operations and the environmental and social impact of the country’s mines.“Definitely, it will continue because it’s the mandate of the MICC to do just that regardless of who’s in the (DENR),” Finance Undersecretary Bayani Agabin said in a statement issued in Manila.Independent expertsThe MICC is hiring independent experts to reassess the operations of all 311 mining contracts in the country in keeping with the directive of President Duterte to conduct a comprehensive review during a Cabinet meeting in February.Acting on that presidential order for a reassessment of the 2016 audit done by the DENR that led to the closure or suspension of the 28 mines, the council subsequently held two meetings that resulted in the unanimous adoption of MICC Resolution No. 6.The resolution provides for a multistakeholder review of all mining operations, and an agreement to seek a P50-million allocation from the Department of Budget and Management to fund this activity over a three-month period.Chamber of MinesThe MICC ordered the review following criticism from miners that Lopez’s decision was baseless and lacked due process.The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines has said it will seek to undo Lopez’s moves when a new environment secretary is appointed.Lopez earlier asked Mr. Duterte to halt the second mine review, challenging its legality despite initially supporting it. | ['Ben O. De Vera'] | 06/10/2016 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/894478/even-without-lopez-govt-to-implement-mining-laws-fairly-says-dof-chief | Inquirer | Credible |
Duterte to call special session on draft BBL | President Duterte on Monday said he would call a special session of Congress to tackle the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).Speaking at the culmination of the Bangsamoro Assembly at Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao province, Mr. Duterte said Congress, scheduled to go on recess on Dec. 15, could hold a special session for one or two days to hear BBL proponents.“I will work very hard for it. I will ask Congress to [hold] a special session just to hear you talk about this issue. I said this is sacred. This is important and valuable. It would involve eventually, if the people wish it, a new structure for the entire country,” Mr. Duterte said.“If not, then let us work out a way as long as we make sure that we can give our brothers and sisters, especially the Moros, an arrangement that is acceptable to them. I know you are realists,” he added.The proposed BBL, which would serve as the charter of a new autonomous region for Muslims in Mindanao, was drawn up by the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), whose members come from the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest separatist group on the island that has signed a peace agreement with the government.Moro rebels have been waging an insurgency since the 1970s seeking autonomy or independence in areas of Mindanao that they consider their homeland.The conflict has claimed more than 120,000 lives.Building supportThe MILF signed a peace agreement with the government in 2014 but the proposed BBL, which would complete the peace deal, has not been able to get through Congress.The immediate objective of Monday’s assembly was to build support for the proposed law.If the proposed BBL is passed into law, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) would be constituted in 2019 in preparation for the first election of the officials of the new autonomous region in 2022, BTC Chair Ghadzali Jaafar said earlier.The new parliament under the BTA will be composed of 80 members, who will all be appointed by the President.Monday’s gathering was held after three postponements due to Mr. Duterte’s unavailability.The President asked for more patience from the MILF, which is observing a ceasefire with the military as both sides try to enforce the peace agreement.“Me, I support you. That is my promise. Do not ever, ever question me,” Mr. Duterte said.“Delay? Of course, it entails delay. You know that … It takes forever to move. Somebody has to push it because there are thousands of concerns,” he said.“But I will impress upon them (Congress), that you’ll have to devote even one day or two days to hear them out. Hear us from Mindanao,” he added.Other proposalsThe President said other Bangsamoro leaders like Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) chair Nur Misuari could also present their case to Congress.Mr. Duterte said he wanted a BBL that was “inclusive” and dealt with the concerns of Muslims, Christians and “lumad” in Mindanao.He said there was a need to “correct the injustice committed on the Moro and the lumad” while preserving the “unity of the republic.”“There must be one nation for all—one republic for us Moro and Christian. That I cannot bargain away. I am doing everything to avoid a breakage,” he said.Mr. Duterte said “just compensation” could be tackled later on through separate legislation but the proposed BBL should ensure autonomy for the Bangsamoro and the right to “enjoy all your natural resources.”“As far as I’m concerned, actually what is at stake here is the preservation of the Filipino republic and to correct historical injustice,” he said.Last month, Mr. Duterte urged Congress to hasten the approval of the proposed BBL, warning that the Moro partners of the government in peacemaking were getting impatient.End to tribal biasesCardinal Orlando Quevedo, the archbishop of Cotabato, spoke at Monday’s gathering and said the inclusivity of the proposed BBL would end tribal biases and religious prejudices in Mindanao.“Its passage would mean peace and coexistence in Mindanao,” he said.Gov. Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao said he attended the assembly “not as a mere supporter” of the proposed BBL but as “a believer of its embodiment, true and lasting peace.”Muslimin Sema, former Cotabato City mayor and chair of the MNLF, said: “Our hope is in Allah as we look back in the long armed struggle for self-determination, which dream and aspiration we find in the [proposed] BBL.”Before Mr. Duterte arrived, Mohagher Iqbal, chair of the MILF peace agreement implementing committee, read statements and resolutions of support from various sectors, mostly from Mindanao.“We hope our lawmakers may give due consideration to these several endorsements toward the [proposed] BBL’s early passage,” Iqbal said. | ['Philip C. Tubeza'] | 06/10/2016 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/948099/duterte-to-call-special-session-on-draft-bbl | Inquirer | Credible |
“HALF-NAKED” ILLEGAL IN PHILIPPINE CITY, BUT NOT “FULLY-NAKED” | it is illegal to be seen half-naked in public. It can mean a fine or up to three to five days in the city jail.The city government has banned people from appearing half-naked or shirtless in public places as it noted that being a “premier urban center,” San Juan must “set an example of orderliness, propriety and decency.” “No person shall move about (i.e. walk, jog, run or the like) in public places and outside his public (sic) residence half-naked or wearing clothing covering only the lowermost portion of the body without any top apparel,” said a provision in the ordinance approved and passed by the city council and Mayor Guia Gomez months ago.The ordinance applies to everybody, including babies. Although Section 2 refers only to people who go out in public without any upper clothing, Section 3 defines “half-naked” as either topless or bottomless, specifically, “wearing clothing covering only the lowermost or uppermost portion of the body with the absence of any top or bottom apparel.”Yesterday, a Filipino man whose name was withheld by authorities was arrested for bathing completely naked in his front yard using a garden hose. Hours later, he was released for lack of sufficient evidence to charge him with misdemeanor related to the new ordinance. The man’s lawyer, Atty. Pedro Batongbakal, said that his client did not violate the law since the new ordinance says nothing about appearing in public “completely ” naked. He said the language of the ordinance is clear that a violation consists of being “either” topless or bottomless, not both.The city’s prosecuting attorney did not challenge Batongbakal’s argument, so the man was immediately released. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 06/10/2016 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2013/10/06/half-naked-illegal-in-philippine-city-but-not-fully-naked/#respond | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
North Korea at center of coming Asia-US talks | When United States President Donald Trump visits our part of the world on November 3-14, he will be attending to many American concerns in the region where it has long maintained a position of leadership and military strength.Near Japan is the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan with its strike force of guided missile destroyers and cruisers. To the south near Singapore is the aircraft carrier USS America with its jet fighters and Marine landing craft. Near Australia is the USS Bonhomme Richard. With these strike forces, the US does not really need any land base in the Pacific.President Trump has said that in this coming visit, he wants to see what he can do about the US trade deficit with China, Asia’s growing economic power, but his main concern is the threat posed by North Korea and the US needs China to help keep this nation in check.The coming meetings in Japan, South Korea, China, and Vietnam on November 3-9 and in Manila for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit on November 10-14 will, in all likelihood, be dominated by the North Korea issue. For this is the one issue that poses a threat to the US in the most basic way— a nuclear attack via an intercontinental ballistic missile.North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has exchanged outright nuclear threats with President Trump, aside from the most undiplomatic insults. Both North and South Korea would most certainly be devastated in any outbreak of war and Japan has denounced the direct threat posed by North Korea’s missiles passing directly overhead on their way to the Pacific. But Kim says its missiles can now reach the US mainland.President Trump’s threats of “fire and fury” have been met by Kim blasting the US president as “mentally deranged.” For a while in the US, there was a rift between Trump and his Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who had been calling for a diplomatic solution.The rest of East Asia and the Pacific have not been directly involved in the (so-far) war of words but if a nuclear war should break out, the entire world would suffer and not just from the radioactive fallout. It is this fear that is at the back of everyone’s mind as the Pacific nations meet this November with President Trump. The series of meetings will end right here in Manila at the ASEAN Summit.Meetings in previous years have been largely goodwill affairs among the leaders of friendly nations, with arms clasping one another in photos. But this one will be facing right in front of it the ominous threat of nuclear war and devastation. | [] | 27/10/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/10/27/north-korea-at-center-of-coming-asia-us-talks/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Rare supermoon sky show seen in PH | It’s a sky show the entire planet can enjoy, weather permitting.The Philippines can enjoy a rare “supermoon” on the night of Nov. 14 since there is no weather disturbance in the country.Monday’s full moon, called supermoon for its larger than usual size, is not only the biggest and brightest this year but also the closest full moon in nearly seven decades.The entire country is expected to have partly cloudy skies on Monday, so the supermoon will likely be visible, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).The moon will reach its closest point to Earth for any given month, at 7:21 p.m. on Monday, or two hours and 31 minutesbefore going full moon at 9:52 p.m., Pagasa said.“This means we’ll be seeing a closer and larger apparent diameter moon this year, a supermoon. This supermoon is one of the closest and biggest in 68 years and it won’t happen again until 2034,” Pagasa said.The term supermoon is a modern astrological term coined by American astrologer Richard Nole.In astronomy however, the event is called perigee full moon, or a full moon that is closer to Earth than average.Both terms refer to when a full moon occurs “when the moon is within 90 percent of its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit.”The moon doesn’t get much bigger and brighter than this. A supermoon can be 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than a full moon that occurs when the moon is farthest to Earth, according to the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa).But it takes a real expert to notice the difference.Nasa planetary geologist Noah Petro said that even he wouldn’t be able to see much difference in size and luminosity.What counts, he said, was getting people “talking, thinking and caring about the moon.”“Everyone gets to see the moon,” said Petro, deputy project scientist for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter circling the moon. “It’s a great shared resource for all humanity.” | ['Dona Z. Pazzibugan'] | 25/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/843963/rare-supermoon-sky-show-seen-in-ph | Inquirer | Credible |
Growing up with 6 mothers | Cinderella had two stepsisters, but I’ve had two stepmothers. That doesn’t sound like the formula for fairy-tale endings, but it sure makes for a complicated family tree.Even before my parents’ marriage was annulled, I found myself running out of ways to call a mother. Mama, Mommy, Nanay—all these titles were taken.My Auntie Mei and Lola Erlinda insisted on being called Nanay and Mommy, respectively, and I’ve never called them by another name.Then there’s the assortment of relatives who also consider me their eldest, including my uncles’ girlfriends who would call me anak (child).As if I wasn’t blessed enough with a surfeit of maternal care, I also have Auntie Rory, Auntie Pinky and Auntie Janette who had individual ways of mothering me when I was younger.One took care of my medical appointments, another took charge of babysitting chores, and the last spoiled me with craft hobbies and geeky merchandise.NontraditionalMy godmother, Ninang Peema, was initially reluctant to take up the title out of fear that her religion might be a problem. But my biological mother was stubborn and quite nontraditional, and insisted that a godmother need only be someone whom parents trusted enough with their child should anything happen to them.I grew up considering Nanay Mei as my mother. She has remained single for the past 25 years and, after a couple of surgeries, was told that she could never bear a child.But those who know us would understand that she already has a daughter, one for whom she’d open the door when I come home late at night, and whose subtlest rebellion she could detect.PremonitionRunners-up for the title are Mommy Erlinda and Ninang Peema and together, the three of them are like my real-life Flora, Fauna and Merryweather, the fairy godmothers of Sleeping Beauty.Mere differences in age and religion and the lack of blood ties do not deter them from feeling and loving like a mother.Looking back, it seemed like my mother already had a premonition of our separation, so she left me in the care of surrogate mothers who could fill in her spot.I’d like to think this eased her departure when I was only 3, and helped me cope with the pain of having a broken family as well.My father struggled to find a lifelong partner and make a home. I did not object when he dated whom he wished, and reassured him countless times that he has his own life to live.All the loveI met most of the girls he had dated, but never found the need to validate myself and my position in my dad’s life with their existence.I felt so loved by my father and assorted mothers that I found it superfluous to seek more affection from strangers. I already had all the love I needed.Most people think it’s harder to live with and love a stepmother. But I always thought it was harder for a stepmother to accept a man who refuses to give up his responsibility for an undeniable past, while seeking a future with her. Wouldn’t that make it more difficult to be a stepmom than a stepchild?A few months before my father finally proposed marriage to his then longtime girlfriend, he asked me a seemingly random and unusual question: “You’ve never felt a mother’s love, have you?”Puzzled, I looked at him and said, “Yes, I did. I have Nanay!”AbsurdI found his question unbelievably absurd. But at that time, I also understood it was his subtle way of tellingme I would be having a new mother soon. “Yes, there’s that,” he continued, “but you’ve never had a mom you could say really took care of you, and loved you.”On normal days, I would have agreed quickly with my father to keep the conversation short, and then retreat to the comfort of silence. But that day was different: his words made my chest burst with defiance. I took no time to think of a response—I simply knew.“But isn’t it a greater kind of love to treat and love someone as if they were already your own?” I told him. “That’s how Nanay is.”My father’s response was mere silence. In a lot of ways, he and I are alike | ['Vinz Lamorena'] | 25/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/894871/growing-up-with-6-mothers | Inquirer | Credible |
Binay to Chinoys: No Kim Henares in my gov’t | FOR THE second time this month, Vice President Jejomar Binay yesterday wooed the Chinese-Filipino community for support, assuring businessmen there would be “no Kim Henares” in his administration.The standard-bearer of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), his running mate Sen. Gregorio Honasan and their senatorial candidates were invited to speak at Chinese General Hospital in Manila by Binay’s friend, Chinese-Filipino businessman James Dy.It was the second time in less than a month that Binay had made a public pledge to name right away a new Bureau of Internal Revenue chief upon assuming the presidency, should he win the May presidential election.He gave the same pledge in a meeting with the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. on Feb. 15.Speaking in Filipino, Binay said yesterday: “Because there are businessmen here, I don’t want you to have any worries. Within 30 minutes, you will no longer have any Kim Henares (Sa loob ng trenta minutos … wala na kayong Kim Henares).”Binay drew an applause.No selective justiceHenares is known to go after big business and other business establishments for their tax dues.Binay also promised that if they voted for Honasan, the senator could solve the peace and order problem in the country—something Honasan also promised in his speech before Binay spoke.The UNA standard-bearer promised that his administration would observe the rule of law in filing cases against people.Binay harped anew on the practice of “selective justice,” as well as on the scare tactics supposedly employed by the present administration.He also promised similar programs, particularly for the benefit of the poor, that he came up with when he was Makati City mayor.This would include implementing a national “yellow card” program that, UNA said in a statement, would provide free maternal, child and elderly care, free outpatient consultations and medicines.‘Decisive’ leadership“In Makati, no one dies from ailments because they are poor,” Binay said, adding the city government takes care of the indigents.Binay also promised to establish health centers in the country and that there would be a rural health worker for every health center.The Vice President said people would not regret voting for him in May because he would be a “decisive leader.”“The Mamasapano incident will not happen (under my presidency),” he said in a dig at President Aquino, who has been criticized for the way he handled the Special Action Force (SAF) operation to capture terrorists in Mamasapano, Maguindanao province, last year.Forty-four SAF commandos were killed in clashes with Moro rebels during the operation to capture Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, who was also killed.100-percent supportBinay thanked Dy for inviting him and for being a friend.Dy pledged his support and that of Philippine Chinese Charitable Association Inc., Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center, and Filipino-Chinese General Chamber of Commerce Inc., as well as “my entire clan and the 1.5 million-strong” Chinese-Filipino community behind Binay.“We will give you our 100 percent support to make a difference in our future,” Dy said. | ['Christine O. Avendaño'] | 25/10/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/769380/binay-to-chinoys-no-kim-henares-in-my-govt | Inquirer | Credible |
ITALY’S SINGING NUN SUOR CRISTINA: ‘I AM NO LONGER A VIRGIN’ | ‘Like A Virgin.’“I feel that after recording my first single and filming my first music video, I am no longer a virgin in as far as the entertainment world is concerned,” she said. She expressed excitement over the release of the single and appreciation for her millions of fans worldwide. “I truly have been touched for the very first time,” she added.The Adobo Chronicles is conducting a poll on whether it’s a thumbs up or a thumbs down for Suor Cristina’s new single: | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 25/10/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2014/10/25/italys-singing-nun-suor-cristina-i-am-no-longer-a-virgin/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Duterte threatens rights activists | President Duterte has threatened to kill human rights activists critical of his war on illegal drugs and called warnings he could be charged in the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the bloody campaign “bullshit.”In a speech in Malacañang on Monday night, Mr. Duterte said those accusing him of ordering the summary execution of drug suspects should be blamed if the country’s drug problem worsened.“The human rights (defenders) said I ordered the killings. I told them ‘OK. Let’s stop. We’ll let them (drug users) multiply so that when it’s harvest time, more people will die,” the President said at the inaugural switch-on of a coal-fired power plant.“I will include you because you are the reason why their numbers swell,” he said in Filipino.Official figures show that police antidrug operations have left 2,500 dead since Mr. Duterte took office on June 30. Another 2,500 drug-related deaths mainly attributed to vigilantes have been reported.An ICC prosecutor last month said The Hague-based tribunal may have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of the drug-related killings.ICC, US“You threaten me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bullshit,” Mr. Duterte said on Monday.He scolded the United States for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the ICC, to which Washington itself is not a signatory. He did not specify when the US threat was made.The United States chose not to sign the Rome Statute to protect former President George W. Bush, Mr. Duterte said, without elaborating.“America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court,” Mr. Duterte said. “It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it.”For months, the President has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his antidrug war, and the United States, European Union and United Nations have been the preferred targets of his comments.The brash former mayor and prosecutor said lawyers in Europe were “rotten,” “stupid” and had a “brain like a pea.”This month, Mr. Duterte said he might follow Russia’s move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as “useless.”According to Mr. Duterte, the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines’ drug problem. He has said he is ready to “rot in jail” to achieve his goals.There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he said on Monday.“I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs,” the President said. “I said, when I was a mayor, ‘If you destroy my city with drugs I will kill you.’“Simple as that …. When was it a crime to say, ‘I will kill you,’ in protecting my country?”Validated listMr. Duterte showed his audience a 10-centimeter-thick pile of documents containing the “validated list” of about 5,000 public officials allegedly behind the illegal drug trade.He said most of those benefiting from the illicit business were village officials who were earning “easy money.”“[That’s why] I acceded to [the postponement of] an election this year for the barangay captains. We would have lost to the money of the drug industry,” he said.Mr. Duterte said he also showed the documents to former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo during a one-on-one meeting.The President had blamed Arroyo and his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, for allowing the drug trade to proliferate during their incumbency.“I am not trying to scare you,” he said.“This is the drug industry of the Philippines. These are all the names,” he said.“I showed this to [former] President Arroyo. I said, ‘Ma’am, we are in a bind. I really do not know how to [handle this]. I surrender. I cannot do this.’”Even if he wanted to kill all those on the list, Mr. Duterte said he “would not have the time and resources to do it.”He said “narcopolitics” was already existing in the Philippines “given the so many thousands of policemen and mayors involved” in the sale and distribution of illegal drugs. | ['Marlon Ramos'] | 2018-11-02 00:10:09+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/849192/duterte-threatens-rights-activists | Inquirer | Credible |
Locsin attunes PH foreign policy to ‘changing times’ | Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. has tweaked the Duterte administration’s foreign policy to a more belligerent tone due to “changing realities.”Hosting his first vin d’honneur at the Department of Foreign Affairs on Nov. 7, Locsin told the diplomatic corps that he had refined his department’s previous policy of “Friends to all, enemies to none.”“We are moving on to a refinement, which addresses changing realities. It is now ‘Friends to friends, enemies to enemies, and worse enemies to false friends,’” Locsin said.He also gave his interpretation of the administration’s “independent” foreign policy.True independence“It is not independent foreign policy if you simply switch the master before whom you are kneeling; you are still on your knees. Independent foreign policy means getting off your knees and on your feet and standing up for our country. That is true independence,” he said.He cited among the country’s diplomatic successes the handling of the West Philippine Sea dispute, mainly with China; the country’s reelection to the United Nations Human Rights Council despite some nations’ outcry against Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs; and the international cooperation to rehabilitate Marawi City.Without surrendering“The country was able to advance its interests, derive economic benefits, and contribute to peace and stability in the South China Sea, without surrendering an iota of Philippine sovereignty and sovereign rights, not retreating one inch from its rightful and inalienable ownership of everything within the lawful territorial reach of our sovereignty,” Locsin said.He said he had told his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, that “these differences need not stand in the way of mutually beneficial cooperation in other areas of common endeavor.”Locsin served as the country’s representative to the United Nations from September 2016 until his appointment three weeks ago as the country’s No. 1 diplomat, replacing Alan Peter Cayetano, who resigned to run for Congress. | ['Dona Z. Pazzibugan'] | 2018-11-02 00:10:09+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1052035/locsin-attunes-ph-foreign-policy-to-changing-times | Inquirer | Credible |
Rescuers race to find landslide survivors | Natonin, Mountain Province: Hundreds of rescuers on Thursday raced to save 22 persons buried alive when an avalanche of rocks and mud swamped a four-storey building of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) at Hacrang, Banauel on Tuesday.Mayor Mateo Chiyawan said 300 rescuers from the Philippine Army, Philippine National Police and Bureau of Fire Protection were working round the clock searching for survivors and retrieving victims of the landslide triggered by Typhoon Rosita.“We need all the support from concerned government agencies but our major concern now is our town remains isolated because of the numerous landslides along national roads leading to the locality. We have sufficient supply of food but we fear that it will not be sufficient if roads leading to our place will remain closed for a number of days,” Chiyawan said.“The landslide is much bigger compared to the landslide that recently happened in Itogon. Rescuers are having a difficult time conducting manual search and rescue operation because of the volume of rocks and mud that buried the structure and the houses of people living near the said office,” he added.Authorities on Thursday said the death toll rose to 22 as more bodies were found in Natonin, Mountain Province.Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said 10 bodies have been recovered from the DPWH building.On Wednesday, the Mountain Province Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Managament Council said eight cadavers were recovered from the collapsed building.It reported that 14 persons survived the landslide.Help arrivesA caravan of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) arrived in Natonin on Thursday after travelling for more than a day.“After going through 40 landslides and waist-deep mud, our Red Cross caravan has finally arrived in Mt. Province. After assessing the site, they now start with the search, retrieval and clearing operations. Praying for everyone’s safety,” Sen. Richard Gordon, PRC chairman, said.The caravan, composed of two ambulances, payloaders, one tractor, a truck loaded with three portable generators and vans full of hot meals and bottled water, left Mandaluyong City at 2 a.m. on October 31.Hours earlier, 20 Red Cross volunteers from the Bontoc, Mt. Province armed with shovels showed up at the landslide area to help search for survivors.WITH ED VELASCO | ['Dexter A. See'] | 2018-11-02 00:10:09+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/rescuers-race-to-find-landslide-survivors/460889/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Duterte is ‘most trusted’; Pinoys hopeful on better life | in both Malacanang de Manila and Malacanang de Davao.***More Filipinos are, likewise, hopeful that their quality of life will improve in the next 12 months.49 percent of Pinoys say they expect their personal quality of life to improve while 3 percent say it could get worse.***Pulse Asia says that its nationwide survey conducted last Dec. 10-15 found 80 percent of Filipinos appreciative of the work done by Duterte while 7 percent expressed their disapproval.“Excellent” rating for Digong Bughaw.***The same survey says 82 percent of Filipinos expressed continued trust in President Duterte, while only 6 percent expressed distrust in him.Translation: Mapapagkatiwalaan pa rin si Digong.***Pulse Asia says that among the country’s top government officials, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno obtained the highest disapproval and distrust ratings of 26 percent and 33 percent, respectively.Sereno’s approval rating has declined from 35 percent in the third quarter to 31 percent in the fourth quarter, Pulse Asia notes.***The survey company adds that most Filipinos remain appreciative of the work done by Vice President Leni Robredo (59 percent from 57 percent) and Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III (57 percent from 55 percent in the last quarter of 2017.)Similarly,most Filipinos trust Robredo (58 percent from 55 percent) and Pimentel (53 percent from 52 percent).***Pulse Asia points out that Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has almost the same approval and indecision ratings of 42 percent versus 37 percent.Trust and indecision scores stands at 37 percent versus 43 percent, it added.***Across geographic areas and socio-economic classes, Pulse Asia notes that only President Duterte succeeded in scoring majority approval ratings (72 to 93 percent and 77 to 85 percent, respectively) and trust figures (74 to 94 percent and 78 to 85 percent, respectively).Malacañang boys are jumping in joy.***Malacanang also cites a separate survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) December 8-16, with 70 percent believing that President Duterte has worked better than former President Benigno S. Aquino III.Duterte enjoys highest approval in Mindanao at 86 percent, followed by Metro Manila at 73 percent,Visayas at 64 percent, and the rest of Luzon, 63 percent, the Palace adds.***Malacañang rejoices at the result of the latest Pulse Asia survey which showed that Duterte is still the country’s most trusted and most approved government official.“This number showed that our people are aware of and recognized the significant strides that the President undertook in his one year and a half month in office,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque says.***“We assure our people that he will continue to discharge his duties with the nation’s interest foremost in his mind,..we will continue to address the problem of poverty, illegal drugs, criminality, and corruption,” Roque adds.Yes to good governance and better service. Yes to a better quality of life that Pinoys wish. | [] | 11/01/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/01/11/duterte-is-most-trusted-pinoys-hopeful-on-better-life/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
CONTROVERSIAL TV HOST WILLIE REVILLAME FILES CANDIDACY FOR PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT | In May of 2016, Filipinos will go to the polls to elect a new president who will succeed NoyNoy Aquino whose six-year-term will be ending.So far, candidate choices are being described as ranging from corrupt to clueless to inexperienced, and voters are hoping someone else would step up to declare his or her candidacy before next month’s filing deadline.Well, the Filipinos may be getting their wish.Television host, actor, comedian and recording artist Willie Revillame has announced that he will be filing his candidacy next week to run as an independent candidate for president.Revillame, who has served as host of several noontime variety television programs on ABS-CBN and GMA Networks, has been the subject of controversy in recent years, including having an unhappy 6-year-old boy perform a “macho dance” on his show. He was also hosting another TV show at the PhilSports Arena which ended in a stampede, killing 73 people and injuring about 400.In deciding to run for president, Revillame told The Adobo Chronicles® that he wanted to offer himself as an alternative to the Filipino voters, considering that “none of the declared presidential candidates have the right experience, motivation and passion” to lead the country to become “great again.”Asked about his chances of winning, Revillame simply answered: “Hey, if Americans consider Donald Trump as a serious candidate for president, why can’t the Filipinos do the same for me?”It’s a valid point that speaks volumes about candidate qualifications. Or voter stupidity.Revillame has chosen a campaign theme of “Masayang Daan” (Happy Trails), a take-off from President Aquino and his anointed candidate Mar Roxas’ “Matuwid na Daan” (Straight Path). | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 16/09/2018 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2015/09/16/controversial-tv-host-willie-revillame-files-candidacy-for-philippine-president/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
China invites PHilippine firms to export fish | FUZHOU, Fujian, China: The Chinese government is inviting Philippine companies to export fish to the mainland that will be processed by China Asean Marine Product Exchange (Campe), which transacts online, delivers offline and settles cross-border trade.AManila-based company, Sinocom, is already exporting milkfish (bangus), according to Campe official Jian Zhou.“We import milkfish from Philippines and one of these companies is Sinocom,” Jian said, adding that the Chinese love the Philippine fish.He said the annual trade volume is about 2,000,000 metric tons and annual value of trade is pegged at not less than 30 billion yuan.The marine products, according to Jian, are mostly shipped to various areas in China to help feed the country’s more than 1 billion people.“But we want Philippine companies to start exporting their products to us,” he said.Current Chinese President Xi Jinping was once secretary of Fuzhou Municipal Party before he became Fujian governor.Campe was started only in 2013 but now handles about fifty percent of marine trading in the world.Together with the establishment of Campe, a huge storage called Mandy Group handles cold chain logistics from ice-making, warehousing, processing, testing and processing of aquatic products.Ten journalists from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines were invited by the Fujian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to tour them to various companies in the province, especially those directly related to the Maritime Silk Route.The Silk Route was established during the early dynasties in China wherein spices from around the world were brought into the country in exchange for vintage Chinese porcelain, among others.Fujian, with a 38.74 million population, is the starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Route more than 1,000 years ago.More than 60,000 seafarers come from this province.Fujian is on the southeast coast of the Chinese mainland or about 1 hour and 15 minutes from Hong Kong.In 2016, its gross domestic product (GDP) totaled RMB 73,617 and government revenue was RMB 414.3 billion.Foreign trade volume reached RMB 1.04 billion.Well-known Filipinos like Henry Sy, Lucio Tan, the Cojuangco family and even national hero Jose Rizal trace their roots to Fujian.“So, the Philippines and China are actually brothers. We have so much in common and we have dealing [with each other] since time immemorial. We have people to people connections ever since,” said Li Lin, deputy director general of the Foreign Affairs Office of Fujian Provincial People’s Government.JAIME R. PILAPIL | ['Jaime Pilapil'] | 2017-04-26 20:11:01+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/china-invites-philippine-firms-export-fish/324209/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Adobo Chronicles Exclusive: Audio Released Of That United Airlines Dragging Moment | Videos of that United Airlines flight in which an elderly man was dragged out of his seat to make room for flight crew have gone viral on the Internet. Many of the clips show the man bleeding after he allegedly hit his mouth against the head rest.But a previously unreleased audio from the flight deck reveals that the pilots and crew were very concerned about the man’s injury and made an announcement on the plane’s✈️ public address system.Only one person responded to the call from the flight deck: the injured passenger. | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 11/04/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2017/04/11/adobo-chronicles-exclusive-audio-released-of-that-united-airlines-dragging-moment/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
It’s now up to Congress to abolish ‘endo,’ says Escudero | The ball is now in the court of Congress to decide the fate of “endo” (end of contract), Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero said on Wednesday.Employers who practice endo offer tenures shorter than six months, the threshold at which a worker must be made permanent and entitled to benefits.Escudero made the statement a day after President Rodrigo Duterte signed Executive Order No. 51 prohibiting certain forms of short-term employment while allowing schemes, like seasonal or project-based jobs of janitors and maintenance workers, to continue.The executive order (EO) basically reiterated existing policies on contracting, and the President called on Congress to amend the Labor Code of the Philippines for more substantive changes.Labor groups said the EO offered nothing new and left millions of endo workers without benefits.‘Political will’Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque acknowledged that EO 51 was a reiteration of an existing law, but said it underlined the President’s determination to improve job security and deliver on his promises.“What is new is the political will of the President to end contractualization,” he told dzMM radio.Contractualization is a scheme used by employers to avoid regularizing workers.Although Malacañang could by itself have ended the practice of endo, “it instead opted to let Congress set the direction,” Escudero said in a television interview.Escudero, a member of the Senate committee on labor and employment, said “essentially, the Labor Code did not prohibit contractualization, but the executive department can regulate it or prohibit it outright.”Malacañang’s choice“The law gives the executive department the choice. Now the President, perhaps, wants to tell the Congress, ‘if you want to prohibit it, why don’t you prohibit it?’” the senator said.Escudero noted that while the Labor Code had gone through a number of amendments in Congress, the provision on contractualization had not yet been touched.“So, perhaps it is about time the Congress indeed [looked] into it and [decided] once and for all whether to [prohibit it] or we remain in the same regime we [have been] for the past 40 years, which is it is the choice of the executive,” he said.The EO issued by the President, according to Escudero, may not have ended endo per se but “provided certain rules and set off a policy direction along the line,” which is a “big push to put an end to contractualization.”Gov’t contractualsEscudero, however, lamented that the government remained the “biggest employer of contractual employees, both national and local.”He recalled that this started during efforts to streamline the bloated government bureaucracy.Escudero said the government should lead by example and fix the problem of contracting in the public sector first, “before slamming the private sector.”Unfair labor practiceBased on the 2016 Integrated Survey on Labor and Employment, there were 1.19 million nonregular workers in the country, including probationary, casual, contractual/project-based and seasonal workers.Labor groups on Wednesday said that instead of putting an end to contractualization, the EO would only serve to promote the unfair labor practice.The EO was based on the Department of Trade and Industry’s “win-win formula” meant to legitimize labor contracting since the task of regularizing workers would fall to third-party service providers, or manpower agencies, said Nagkaisa Labor Coalition spokesperson Rene Magtubo.There is no security of tenure because when a principal employer cuts ties with the third-party service provider, “workers would automatically lose their jobs,” Magtubo said.Compared with the fifth draft submitted by labor groups, the EO omitted the provision that would make direct hiring the norm in employment relations.Because of the omission, the President “did not end precarious work arrangements, such as endo and abusive contractualization,” said Alan Tanjusay, spokesperson for the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines.Campaign promiseRoque, however, said that with the signing of EO 51, the President fulfilled his campaign promise to stop the practice of endo.“[H]e never promised to stop all contractualization even if you go back to his speeches and the statements he made during the campaign,” he said.Roque noted that the President had said in his Labor Day speech that only Congress could address the labor groups’ call to prohibit all forms of contractualization. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 2018-02-25 22:29:46+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/987265/its-now-up-to-congress-to-abolish-endo-says-escudero | Inquirer | Credible |
OFWs seek lifting of Kuwait ban | CITING economic reasons, hundreds of skilled overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) affected by the total deployment ban to Kuwait have appealed to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 3rd to exempt them from the ban and allow them to leave immediately so as not to lose their jobs.In a dialogue over the weekend at the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) office in Manila, the affected workers, which included first time workers and returning old timers who signed contracts with different employers, said that they were not household service workers (HSWS) or domestic helpers (DH) but company workers, and were amply protected by Kuwait labor laws.The workers appealed to Bello to limit the ban to HSWS or DHs, the most abused workers not only in Kuwait but in other Middle East countries as well.Administrative Order (AO) N0.54A, which sets the guidelines on the implementation of total deployment to Kuwait, covers all types of workers being deployed for the first time for overseas employment in Kuwait, without distinction as to skill, profession, or type of work.Exempted are Balik-Manggagawa or the OFWs who are vacationing in the Philippines and will be returning to the same employer to finish their contacts, at the end of his/her vacation; and OFWs who are returning to Kuwait on a new contract with the same employer.Also exempted are seafarers who will be transiting through or boarding in Kuwait to join their principals.Some of the workers claimed that they were already knee-deep in debts while the others have already sold their properties, adding that they need to leave before their visas expire or their employers would replace them with workers from other countries.These skilled workers are oil and gas engineers, IT professionals, nurses, medical and laboratory technicians, store mangers, sales personnel, communication technicians, maintenance personnel electricians, plumbers, and carpenters who have been issued visas and are just awaiting their plane tickers from their employers.But Bello has remained steadfast and instead appealed for understanding, saying that it is his responsibility to ensure the safety and interest of Filipino workers, regardless of whether they are HSWs or skilled workers.“We are appealing for your understanding. We need to ensure first the safety of all Filipino workers through the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will give added protection to Filipino workers,” he added.According to Bello, the Kuwait government is very receptive to the MOU and have signified its willingness to sign it by next month after the Philippines and Kuwait panels discussed the merits of the proposed labor policy, which will prohibit the confiscation of the passports and mobile phones of Filipino workers.President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the deployment ban more than two weeks ago following the discovery of the body of Joanna Demafelis, a Filipina domestic helper, inside a freezer in an unoccupied apartment unit in Kuwait.Prior to that, the DOLE also ordered the probe on the cause of death of seven other Filipino household workers who died in Kuwait. | ['William Depasupil'] | 2018-02-25 22:29:46+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/ofws-seek-lifting-kuwait-ban/382672/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Duterte seen breaking traditions | FROM his venue of choice to the magistrate he picked to administer his oath, incoming President-elect Rodrigo Duterte will be breaking traditions in his inauguration.Duterte will take his oath at Malacañang before a schoolmate and fraternity brother on June 30, in austere rites seen as historic.Duterte, the first politician from Mindanao to be elected President and the first city mayor to jump straight to the highest office in the land, will be sworn in as the country’s 16th President by Supreme Court Associate Justice Bienvenido Reyes, according to the Davao City mayor’s executive assistant, Christopher Go.Go did not specify Duterte’s reason for his choice, but both Reyes and Duterte are graduates of San Beda College of Law. They are also members of the same fraternity, Lex Talionis.Duterte had earlier appointed schoolmates to his Cabinet: Vitaliano Aguirre as secretary of justice and Arthur Tugade as transportation and communications secretary.Presidents traditionally take their oath of office before the Chief Justice. But President Aquino famously broke tradition in 2010 when he took his oath of office before then Supreme Court Associate Justice Conchita Carpio Morales in protest against what he believed was the midnight appointment of then Chief Justice Renato Corona.But Mr. Aquino kept the tradition of being inaugurated at Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park.Malacañang ritesDuterte is the first to break that tradition since Vice President Carlos P. Garcia, who first assumed the presidency through succession following the sudden death of President Ramon Magsaysay. He took his oath on March 17, 1957, in the Council of State Room at Malacañang’s Executive Building.Duterte’s inauguration will be held at Rizal Hall, the largest room in the Palace where special state events are held.The President-elect has refused to be inaugurated together with Vice President-elect Leni Robredo, who belongs to a different political party.But former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr. on Friday said Duterte and Robredo should be jointly inaugurated as a symbol of unity after the highly divisive national elections.“It will relay the message to the people that the President and the Vice President, even if they belong to different parties, have one common goal and that is the good of the people,” Pimentel, chair emeritus of Duterte’s party, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), told reporters.Incoming Presidential Communications Operations Office head Martin Andanar said Cabinet members would take their oaths together during Duterte’s inauguration.‘Maruya,’ coco juiceUp to 500 guests, including foreign diplomats and lawmakers, will be invited to the event.Andanar said maruya—fried battered cardava banana—and coconut juice would be served for snacks.He said Duterte’s speech was already being prepared, and that the incoming President might use a teleprompter. The longtime mayor of Davao City is used to speaking extemporaneously and is notorious for profanity-laced rhetoric. | ['Tarra Quismundo'] | 31/01/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/791236/duterte-seen-breaking-traditions | Inquirer | Credible |
Senators Want To Export Philippines’ Garbage To Sweden | It is heartening to know that our senator friends are also doing some real work other than just holding Senate hearings and inquiries week after week.Today, Senators Antonio Trillanes, Leila De Lima, Bam Aquino and Risa Hontiveros filed a joint resolution authorizing the Department of Trade and Industryt (DTI) to export Philippine garbage to Sweden.The senators drafted the resolution immediately after learning that Sweden has run out of rubbish for its efficient recycling program. The European country is now importing garbage in order to keep its recycling machines in continuous operation.Trillanes told The Adobo Chronicles that their resolution could spell economic progress for the Philippines while keeping the country clean and garbage-free.If that happens, it is going to be really more fun in the Philippines! | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 31/01/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2017/01/31/senators-want-to-export-philippines-garbage-to-sweden/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
WATCH! Eto Na po Kakasohan na ng INCITING to SEDITION sina Trillanes, Alejano at Robredo | Eto Na po Kakasohan na ng INCITING to SEDITION sina Trillanes, Alejano at RobredoSo what can you say about this one? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below, and don't forget to share this post to your family and friends online. And also, visit our website more often for more updates. | [] | 2018-10-05 00:10:31+00:00 | http://www.newsmediaph.com/2017/03/watch-eto-na-po-kakasohan-na-ng.html | News Media PH | Suspicious |
Macalintal confirms Senate run | Romulo Macalintal, the legal counsel of Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo, confirmed that he would seek a Senate seat in next year’s elections.Macalintal, a veteran election lawyer, said he would run as an independent candidate and as guest candidate of Robredo’s opposition coalition.He vowed to represent senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWDs).“Maraming pangangailangan ang ating mga kapatid na senior citizens at persons with disabilities. Mula sa kanilang kalusugan, kabuhayan, pati na rin kapakanan (Senior citizens and persons with disabilities have plenty of needs ranging from their health, livelihood, to their individual rights),” he said.“Kaya sa 2019 elections, save your last vote for me para sa ating mga kapatid na senior citizen at PWDs (so in the 2019 elections, save your last vote for me for the senior citizens and PWDs),” he said.Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan also confirmed Macalintal’s Senate run.“Atty. Mac, being the lawyer of the vice president, has been consistent in his position on the case of the vice president and other related matters,” Pangilinan said.Macalintal earlier said that he was “considering entering politics.”“I had been assisting politicians winning the elections, perhaps I could try if I apply it to myself,” he said in a news briefing last week.Aside from Macalintal, the Liberal Party will also be fielding Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino 4th, former House Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada 3rd, and human rights lawyer Jose Manuel Diokno. | ['Mary Gleefer F. Jalea'] | 2018-10-05 00:10:31+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/macalintal-confirms-senate-run/448397/ | Manila Times | Credible |
20 Filipino Foods You Need To Try Before You Die | In the spirit of the season where celebrations center around the dining table, we share with you all this carefully selected list of 20 Filipino foods you need to try before you die.How many of these have you tried?Here’s the LIST, courtesy of MyBayKitchen.com | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 19/12/2016 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2016/12/19/20-filipino-foods-you-need-to-try-before-you-die-2/?share=email | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
BIR: Avoid April 16 ITR filing deadline | The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) yesterday reminded self-employed professionals and businessmen and other individual taxpayers to submit their 2017 income tax returns (ITR) early and avoid the deadline rush on April 16, 2018.BIR Commissioner Caesar R. Dulay stressed that the deadline will not be extended and late filers will be assessed the usual penalties, including the one-time 25 percent surcharge on the amount due and 20 percent annual interest.The last day of filing has been moved to April 16 because the original April 15 deadline falls on a Sunday.Metro Manila revenue regional directors told filers to use the old ITR schedule and not the new one mandated by the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law which will be applied in 2019 to cover income earned this year.A salaried worker need not file ITR as the chore is handled by their employer under the so-called substituted filing system.He or she is, however, required to file if he has two or more employers.Also exempted from submitting ITR are individuals whose annual gross income does not exceed his personal and additional exemption as well as others whose sole income has been subjected to final withholding tax like interest on bank deposits and sale of real estate properties.A married working couple may claim P50,000 each as personal exemption, but only one can claim the additional exemption of P25,000 for up to four dependent children. | [] | 09/04/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/04/09/bir-avoid-april-16-itr-filing-deadline/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
‘LES MISERABLES’ : PRESIDENT AQUINO ELATED OVER PHILIPPINES’ NEW WORLD RECORD | In his most recent State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July, Philippine President NoyNoy Aquino touted his administration’s accomplishments in the areas of economic and infrastructure development, modernization of the military and reforms to combat government corruption.Aquino takes great pride in the fact that during his administration, the Philippines has been transformed from being the “sick man of Asia” to the region’s “new economic tiger.”Today, Aquino told reporters he was extremely elated over a new world record attained by his country. The Philippines just made it to the top 21 list of “Most Miserable Countries.”The list, put together by Bloomberg News, was based on a “misery index” developed by the late economist Arthur Okun. The index takes into account a country’s inflation and unemployment rates. The index was extremely popular during the Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan administrations.The Philippines was number 16 on the list of 21, earning a misery index score of 11.90% (4.9% inflation rate and 7.0 % unemployment).Aquino said, “Every Filipino should be very proud because we are the only country in Asia that made the list.”Venezuela, the Philippines’ toughest rival in international beauty pageants, was number one on the miserable list.Les Miserables, Philippines! | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 04/09/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2014/09/04/les-miserables-president-aquino-elated-over-philippines-new-world-record/#respond | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Trillanes, De Lima want Andanar probed | Senators Antonio Trillanes IV and Leila de Lima may just investigate the claim of Communications Secretary Martin Andanar of information that Senate reporters were offered $1,000 each to cover a retired Davao City policeman who confessed to being a hit man of then mayor and now President Duterte.SPO3 Arturo Lascañas had accused President Rodrigo Duterte of being behind the Davao Death Squad, a group of policemen and rebel returnees, which killed hundreds of criminal suspects and other people when Duterte was still mayor.De Lima said she believed the Senate should take a stand on Andanar’s claim, which the Senate media had denounced as “fake news” and had demanded an apology from the communications secretary.But Andanar did not apologize, saying he never said reporters accepted the alleged bribe.“If we can also investigate him, we will investigate him,” De Lima told reporters. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 29/10/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/874338/trillanes-de-lima-want-andanar-probed | Inquirer | Credible |
Saudi, Turkish prosecutors discuss Khashoggi killing probe | Top Saudi and Turkish prosecutors on Monday discussed the investigation into the killing of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi, a show of cooperation amid Turkish demands that Saudi Arabia turn over 18 detained suspects for a murder trial.Saudi Arabia’s top prosecutor, Saud al-Mojeb, met with Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor, Irfan Fidan, for an hour and 15 minutes at Istanbul’s main courthouse, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency said.The two countries have announced a joint investigation of the journalist’s killing in Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul, although Turkey has leaked evidence to the media in an apparent effort to pressure its regional rival over the crime committed by Saudi officials.Turkey alleges a hit squad from Saudi Arabia traveled to Istanbul to kill the journalist who was critical of the Saudi leadership and then tried to cover it up.Under mounting international pressure, Saudi Arabia has changed its narrative about Khashoggi’s killing several times, only recently acknowledging that Turkish evidence shows it was premeditated.Turkey says a trial in Turkey would be transparent, reflecting concerns about Saudi attempts to dodge responsibility for the killing.Turkey’s foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, on Monday welcomed the cooperation between Turkish and Saudi investigators and said he hoped there would be no further delays.“The investigation should be concluded as soon as possible,” Cavusoglu said. “The whole world is curious. All the truth should be revealed.”Turkey has been pushing Saudi Arabia to help locate Khashoggi’s body, which has not been found.Turkey is seeking the extradition of the Saudi suspects detained for the killing, which happened after Khashoggi entered the consulate on Oct. 2. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, however, says the kingdom will try the perpetrators and bring them to justice after the investigation is completed.Saudi officials characterize the killing as a rogue operation carried out by Saudi agents who exceeded their authority.Yet some of those implicated in the killing are close to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s heir-apparent whose condemnation of the killing has failed to ease suspicions that he was involved.Khashoggi, a onetime Saudi insider and U.S. resident who lived in self-imposed exile for almost a year before his death, had written critically of the crown prince in columns for The Washington Post.Al-Mojeb, the prosecutor visiting Istanbul, was named attorney general by Saudi King Salman last year after a palace shakeup that saw Prince Mohammed sideline his elder, more experienced cousin, Mohammed bin Nayef, for the title of crown prince.Months later, al-Mojeb played a key role when high-level Saudi princes, businessmen, government officials and military officers were detained and stripped of significant sums of their wealth in exchange for freedom. The sweep, described by Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his backers as an anti-corruption drive, helped the new crown prince consolidate his power and weaken potential rivals.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his country will reveal more evidence about the killing but is not in any rush to do so. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has said the killing undermines regional stability and has urged Saudi Arabia to conduct a full and complete investigation.In a video released Monday, journalists from a number of media organizations read extracts from Khashoggi’s last Washington Post column, titled “What the Arab world needs most is free expression.”“We will continue to campaign for truth and accountability for his horrific murder, by those who planned, ordered and executed it,” said Kumi Naidoo, secretary general of Amnesty International, which released the video. | [] | 29/10/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/10/29/saudi-turkish-prosecutors-discuss-khashoggi-killing-probe/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
UP Student caught together with NPA terrorist members in Negros Island | A student from the University of the Philippines-Cebu was caught by the Armed Forces during an encounter between the government forces and New People’s Army (NPA) terrorists.Members of the 62nd Infantry Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division of the Philippine Army cracked down a group of heavily armed NPA terrorists at Barangay Luyang, Mabinay, Negros Occidental on March 3.According to the report of Hukbo.com, more or less armed men believed to be NPA terrorist fired on the members of the army which prompted the troops to retaliate.The encounter which lasted for 45 minutes ended with a victory from the government forces, they also captured six members of NPA, however they were shocked when they discovered that among the group that they arrested, there’s a female student from UP.Army identified that the female student was a mass communication student in UP-Cebu, however they didn’t disclosed her name.Photo: Hukbo.comThey also arrested two armed minors that were recruited by the terrorist group from Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental.Firearms recovered from the captured NPA terrorist were high powered firearms as follows: one M16A1, one M16A1 attached with M203 Grenade launcher, two M4 Rifles, one VLTOR (M16), one AG 43 (M16), rifle grenades, explosives, other war fighting materials, food stuffs and subversive documents.A week ago, alleged members of CPP-NPA terrorist have burned a tractor in La Castellna and a Sugarcane Truck Hauler in Canlaon City.The government forces were started to conduct a peace patrol in the area where the encounter happened because they received several reports from the locals that members of the NPA were doing a rampant extortion, harassment and recruitment.According to 303rd Brigade Commander Brigadier General Losañes, the increasing locals who were trying to coordinate with the army is a manifestation that the people are already tired with the crimes committed by the NPA.In a statement, General Losañes said.“it is a clear manifestation that the people themselves are tired of these armed NPA Terrorists conducting extortion, harassment and recruitment of minors as terrorists. Furthermore, despite the encounter, the capture of the six Communist Terrorists who were unharmed clearly shows the troops’ adherence to the principles of Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law and Rule of Law with its primacy of preserving human lives. With our continuous combat operation against the communist terrorists, we encourage the CPP-NPA Terrorists to lay down their arms, return to the folds of the law and avail the Government’s Comprehensive Local Integration Program and live a normal and peaceful life”.Critics of University of the Philippines labeled the educational institution as a recruiting grounds for the future members of the Communist Party of the Philippines.A blog even listed the procedures on how a student from U.P slowly evolving to become a communist.UP Cebu is not yet giving a statement on the arrest of their student. | ['View All Posts Pinoytrending'] | 2018-03-03 20:45:52+08:00 | https://pinoytrending.altervista.org/student-caught-together-npa-terrorist-members-negros-island/ | Pinoytrending Altervista | Suspicious |
FREE FLIP FLOPS FOR EVERY MAR ROXAS SUPPORTER | It’s been said many times that behind every man’s success is a woman. Well, that is certainly true in history as it is in contemporary politics.In the Philippines, Imelda Marcos is widely acknowledged as the inspiration (or force) that spelled the late President Ferdinand Marcos’ success and staying power.It’s 2015, and there’s a new batch of Filipino women that are the driving force behind their husband’s political careers. At least one woman that we know of: broadcaster Korina Sanchez, a.k.a., Mrs. Mar Roxas.Even before Roxas declared his candidacy for president of the Philippines, Sanchez has been a staunch supporter and defender of her husband. Many will recall that she came to the defense of Roxas when CNN’s Anderson Cooper criticized the slow response of the Aquino government (and, by extension, the Department of Interior and Local Government of which Roxas was secretary) to the plight of the victims of typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).Political strategists had warned that Sanchez’ penchant for making frequent controversial public statements (like when she said on the air that she hoped an impending typhoon that was about to approach the Philippines would veer towards Japan instead) could be detrimental to her husband’s candidacy. So against her will, she has been staying quietly in the background while her husband did all the talking and campaigning.But now that her husband’s standing in the polls is not looking very good, Sanchez is again stepping up — in a very public way — to help her husband secure the votes he needs to become the next Philippine president.Sanchez has just launched “Tsinelas mula kay Roxas,” (flip flops from Roxas), a nation-wide campaign in which Sanchez will hand out a pair of her infamous slippers or flip flops to every Filipino voter who would pledge to vote for her husband.So voters, get them now while supplies last! | ['Pol Pinoy'] | 23/12/2017 0:00 | https://adobochronicles.com/2015/12/23/free-flip-flops-for-every-mar-roxas-supporter/ | Adobo Chronicles | Suspicious |
Roxas camp working on Pacquiao to leave Binay, UNA | The camp of Interior Secretary Mar Roxas is trying to woo the boxing icon, Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao, to leave the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) of Vice President Jejomar Binay and join the Liberal Party (LP) as a senatorial candidate in the 2016 elections.Yacap Rep. Carol Jayne Lopez, a friend of Pacquiao and a Roxas supporter, said the boxer seemed receptive to the offer but was “keeping his options open.”“We’re hoping he makes the right decision,” she told reporters.Lopez is a member of the minority in the House of Representatives but has actively supported the presumed candidacy of Roxas under the LP.She said Pacquiao seemed to still be weighing a lot of things “about where he wants to go in life.”“It is his decision. We just want to make sure we did not miss out on inviting him,” Lopez said.If Pacquiao agrees, he will be part of the LP senatorial slate, she said.At 36, he is still too young to run for Vice President, open only to those at the age of 40.But Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza, who is closely identified with Pacquiao, said he saw no way the boxer would leave UNA for the LP.He told a news forum that he did not see Pacquiao as a “balimbing,” or turncoat. Atienza plans to run for senator under the UNA banner.Pacquiao, a member of the majority coalition, is an underperformer at the House and is one of its top absentees. In the 16th Congress, he has sponsored or authored 15 bills or resolutions, five of which are related to sports or boxing, while four are local bills.He attended the formal launch of Binay’s UNA party on July 1.Pacquiao said then that he was still in the process of deciding whether to run for senator.Asked if he would campaign for Binay, Pacquiao had been evasive: “That depends. We have not talked about that. I am here to support the party declarations.”RELATED STORIESBinay asks Pacquiao to run for senator in UNA slateINQUIRER.net poll: Pacquiao should stick to boxing | ['Dj Yap'] | 2018-06-02 00:04:16+00:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/708980/roxas-camp-working-on-pacquiao-to-leave-binay-una | Inquirer | Credible |
SC warned vs usurping Comelec authority | THE Supreme Court will be usurping the authority of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) if it won’t follow a Comelec Resolution setting a 25-percent threshold for the manual counting of votes for the 2016 Vice Presidential race, according to a group led by former solicitor general Florin Hilbay.“Manindigan Na” issued the statement in connection with a pending appeal by Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo to the Supreme Court, sitting as Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), to set the valid vote threshold at 25 percent based on Comelec’s September 2016 Resolution for manual counting and for Vote Counting Machines in the 2016 automated polls.The manual recount in Camarines Sur, Negros Oriental and Iloilo stemmed from former Sen. Ferdinand“Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s protest against Robredo who defeated him by over 200,000 votes.“The Comelec’s September 2016 Resolution set the minimum threshold at 25 percent. There is no logical reason for the PET to use a different threshold. By insisting on their own rules, the PET is subverting the will of the voters and usurping the constitutional mandate of the Comelec,” the Hilbay-led group said.The group was referring to PET’s 50-percent threshold for a valid vote, which was set in the 2010 automated polls.“We find this move a manipulation to take away votes that were rightly cast for the duly-elected Vice President,” Hilbay said.Marcos accused Robredo of winning based on fraud, which Robredo denied. | ['Llanesca T. Panti'] | 2018-06-02 00:04:16+00:00 | https://www.manilatimes.net/sc-warned-vs-usurping-comelec-authority/403261/ | Manila Times | Credible |
Joint graduation eyed in BIFF areas | The Armed Forces of the Philippines is considering holding joint graduation exercises for schools in the areas affected by the massive military offensive against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) rebel group in Maguindanao.AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said he would support the decision of the ground commander, Maj. Gen Edmundo Pangilinan, commander of the 6th Infantry Division, on the matter.“We are considering a proposal to identify a safe area where the joint graduation ceremonies can be conducted. We need to discuss and take collective decisions together with our partners,” Catapang said.He said local government units and other government agencies like the Philippine National Police and the Department of Education will be consulted.“We would like to see schoolchildren flocking to the schools in pursuit of education and better lives. We are delighted to see them finish school and receive their diplomas and recognition,” Catapang said.“We understand the plight of the people who have fled to evacuation centers, especially the women, children and old people,” he added.As of Saturday, the AFP placed the BIFF casualties of its offensive at 139 killed, 53 wounded and 12 arrested.Catapang said the government forces would continue to conduct focused military operations against armed threats like the BIFF and the terrorists that they have been coddling in their communities.He said the AFP had gained the momentum in the fight against lawlessness and would never abandon its mandate to protect the people.ReinforcementsMeanwhile, the 6th Infantry Division has welcomed the arrival of the 34th Infantry (Reliable) Battalion of the 8th Infantry Division at Camp Siongco, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, to reinforce the troops in the campaign against the BIFF.Brig. Gen. Manolito Orense, the assistant division commander of the 6th Infantry Division, led the Kampilan troops in welcoming the newly deployed unit from Samar province.The 34th Infantry Battalion, under Lt. Col. Edgar de los Reyes, will help in maintaining peace and security in the division’s area of responsibility covering the provinces of Maguindanao and parts of North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat and Lanao del Sur.The AFP said the deployment marks the start of the holding phase wherein government forces will establish encampments in former BIFF areas to prevent the armed lawless group from returning. It will also pave the way for the implementation of various development projects in the different communities in the affected areas, it said. | ['Cynthia D. Balana'] | 21/09/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/680492/joint-graduation-eyed-in-biff-areas | Inquirer | Credible |
SWS: 66% satisfied with Duterte | President Duterte achieved a personal best in public approval ratings last month after the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed a “very good” net satisfaction rating of +66.In its June 23 to 26 poll of 1,200 respondents nationwide, SWS said 78 percent said they were satisfied with the President’s work while 12 percent were dissatisfied, for a net satisfaction rating (satisfied minus dissatisfied) of +66 in June.The satisfaction rating, which has a three-point margin of error, was up three points from Mr. Duterte’s net rating of +63 (75 percent satisfied, 12 percent dissatisfied) in March.But his satisfaction rating in Mindanao dropped 12 points from +87 in March to +75 June although this was offset by gains in other parts of the country, the survey found.In particular, Mr. Duterte’s net satisfaction rating was highest in the Visayas where it increased from +62 to an “excellent” +73.His satisfaction also rose by seven points +51 to +58 in Luzon areas outside Metro Manila and also increased from +63 to +64 to +63 in Metro Manila itself.The survey was conducted a month after Mr. Duterte signed Proclamation No. 216, declaring martial law, and Malacañang claimed the survey proved public support for martial law.“It shows tacit public support to the President’s action following the rebellion in Marawi,” said Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella.“This positive acknowledgement of the Filipino people further motivates the administration to work for the restoration of normalcy in Marawi and to start its rehabilitation as well as bring a comfortable life for all Filipinos, including Muslim Filipinos,” he added.The President’s net satisfaction score rose and was classified “very good” in all socioeconomic classes: from +56 to +59, among classes ABC; from +64 to +66 among class D and from +60 to +67 among class E.By locale, net scores rose in urban areas from a “very good” +63 in March to “very good” +68 in June. It was the same in rural areas at “very good” +63.Among males, it remained “very good” but dipped from +65 to +63. It also stayed “very good” among females but increased from +61 to +69.SWS considers a rating of plus 70 and above as “excellent”; plus 50 to plus 69, “very good”; plus 30 to plus 49, “good”; plus 10 to plus 29, “moderate”; plus 9 to minus 9, “neutral”; minus 10 to minus 29, “poor.” | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 21/09/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/911980/sws-66-satisfied-with-duterte | Inquirer | Credible |
At least 126 dead in Lake Victoria ferry disaster | when it capsized close to the pier on Ukara Island on Thursday, according to reports on state media.Witnesses reached by AFP said the ferry sank when passengers rushed to one side to disembark as it approached the dock.The death toll rose to 126 by mid-afternoon Friday, according to Tanzania’s transport minister.“We are sad to report there are 126 dead,” Isack Kamwele told state television, adding that a further update would be provided at 6pm local time (1500 GMT).Mwanza governor John Mongella had earlier said the number of survivors was 40, but it was unclear whether any new survivors had been found since rescue operations resumed with police and army divers on Friday morning.“Operations are continuing,” he said.Rescue operations were suspended overnight Thursday and hopes are fading that more survivors might still be found.State television cited witnesses reporting that more than 200 people had boarded the ferry at Bugolora, a town on the larger Ukerewe Island, where it was market day when locals said the vessel was usually packed with people and goods.“I have not heard from either my father or my younger brother who were on the ferry. They had gone to the market in Bugolora to buy a school uniform and other supplies for the new school term,” said Domina Maua, who was among those seeking information about loved ones.Davita Ngenda, an elderly woman in Ukara, had already received bad news.“My son is among the bodies recovered,” she said, weeping. “He had gone with his wife but she has not been found yet. My God, what did I do to deserve this?”Sebastian John, a teacher, said such tragedies had become part of life for those living on the lake.“Since my birth, people have gone to their deaths on this lake, but what are we to do? We did not choose to be born here, we have nowhere to go,” he said.– Overloading and ‘negligence’ –It remains unclear how many people are still missing.Tanzania’s Electrical, Mechanical and Services Agency, which is responsible for ferry services, said it was unknown how many passengers were aboard the MV Nyerere.The ageing ferry, whose hull and propellers were all that remained visible after it overturned, was also carrying cargo, including sacks of maize, bananas and cement, when it capsized around 50 metres (55 yards) from Ukara dock.The cause of the accident was not immediately clear, but overloading is frequently to blame for such incidents.President John Magufuli was “deeply saddened” by the disaster and called on Tanzanians to “stay calm during these difficult times,” according to spokesman Gerson Msigwa.The country’s opposition, however, accused the government of “negligence”.“We have often raised concerns about the poor condition of this ferry, but the government turned a deaf ear. We have repeatedly denounced this negligence,” said John Mnyika, deputy secretary general of Chadema, the main opposition party.Mnyika said overloading was “another failure of the authorities” and criticised “inadequate relief efforts as well as delays” in the rescue operation.With a surface area of 70,000 square kilometres (27,000 square miles), oval-shaped Lake Victoria is roughly the size of Ireland and is shared by Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.Capsizes are not uncommon in the massive lake, and the number of fatalities is often high due to a shortage of life jackets and the fact that many people in the region cannot swim.The deadliest such accident in recent decades was in May 1996, when around 800 people died after their ferry sank on the way to Mwanza in Tanzania. | [] | 21/09/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/09/21/at-least-126-dead-in-lake-victoria-ferry-disaster/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Duterte at it again, questions God’s fairness in Creation story | This time, President Duterte is questioning God’s fairness for creating the concept of original sin when he let Adam and Eve partake of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.“They were shamed by God, they were cast away from Paradise. They engaged in [sex] but with malice. Now I ask, is that a fair God?” the President said.Mr. Duterte made the remarks during the recent 117th anniversary celebration of the Office of the Solicitor General where he again challenged the tenets of Christianity.Launching into his retelling of the Creation story in the Book of Genesis, the President recounted how Adam and Eve came to be, sans the malice that came from the forbidden fruit.Mr. Duterte claimed that God told the snake to tempt Eve with a bite from the forbidden fruit, which he said to be an apple.“So the snake rubbed itself against Eve, the fool enjoyed it. She ate it. When she took the bite, and she felt earthly, there was malice. She looked at Adam and there was lust,” he said.Eve, he said, told Adam to take a bite as well, forming malice in the first man and woman.“They went at it and there was malice. Now I ask you, is that a fair God?” he asked. Last month, the President drew flak for calling God “stupid” for creating the concept of original sin in the Creation story in the Bible. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 14/03/2018 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1007871/duterte-at-it-again-questions-gods-fairness-in-creation-story | Inquirer | Credible |
Ryan tells colleagues Pennsylvania race is ‘a wake-up call’ | House Speaker Paul Ryan is privately warning Republicans of a “bit of a wake-up call” as Democrat Conor Lamb edged past the Republican in the Pennsylvania special election.Ryan told House Republicans on Wednesday they need to “get to work,” fundraise and not be caught off guard heading into a midterm campaign season where Democratic enthusiasm is real. That’s according to two people familiar with Ryan’s remarks, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly.Publicly, Ryan was more upbeat, blaming the Pennsylvania outcome in a Trump-heavy district on Lamb’s centrist views. Ryan says, “you’re not going to see repeated” in November, as Republicans try to retain their majority.Ryan urged colleagues to tout the GOP-passed tax plan and remind voters that Democrats opposed it. | [] | 14/03/2018 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/03/14/ryan-tells-colleagues-pennsylvania-race-is-a-wake-up-call/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |
Gov’t earmarks P30.8B to fill job vacancies | The government has earmarked P30.8 billion for the hiring of personnel to fill almost 87,000 vacant positions this year, according to the Department of Budget and Management.In a statement on Monday, the DBM said the funding shall come from the miscellaneous personnel benefits fund in the 2015 national budget.Citing the staffing summary of the 2015 National Expenditure Program, the DBM noted that 86 percent, or 1,244,931, of the 1,433,186 permanent positions in government agencies were already filled.But of the 188,255 available slots, only 86,994 could be filled this year, the DBM said.Of these vacancies, 44,602 are for teaching and nonteaching positions at the Department of Education, on top of 6,865 positions at state universities and colleges; 15,898 are for safety and security-related jobs at the Department of the Interior and Local Government, including the Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology and the Philippine National Police; 5,780 positions at the Department of National Defense; 767 at the Department of Labor and Employment’s Technical Education and Skills Development Authority; 120 at the Commission on Higher Education; and 102 at the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Science High School.More teachers, nursesAlso to be filled are 4,179 vacancies in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao; 8,375 healthcare-related jobs at the Department of Health and 306 positions at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center.“The [Aquino] administration is committed to providing our people with job opportunities, especially during this period of robust growth, requiring the support of a skilled and able workforce. The national government needs to employ more teachers, nurses and other crucial personnel in order to maximize the delivery of social services,” Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said.“It’s in our best interest to fulfill the required job positions in the national government as they serve a twofold purpose. We give jobs to Filipinos who have the appropriate work skills and we ensure that our programs are carried out by suitable personnel. In doing so, we’re able to respond to the needs of all our countrymen,” Abad said.Also, the DBM said P16.7 billion had been allocated to create 65,204 positions at DepEd, DILG and DOH. | ['Ben O. De Vera'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/686722/govt-earmarks-p30-8b-to-fill-job-vacancies | Inquirer | Credible |
Through Church, drug war catharsis comes with tools for justice | It was raining on the night of June 7 when her 33-year-old son, Jose, was killed, “Cora” begins, her voice cracking. Around her, 16 other women listen to a tragic and familiar story.She was roused from sleep outside their house in Parola Compound, a community of informal settlers in impoverished Tondo, Manila. Police in plainclothes had seized Jose. He was shouting for his mother as they dragged him to an alley beyond her sight.Cora was whisked from the scene just as two gunshots pierced the air. It was 2 a.m. When she doubled back minutes later, she found Jose dead in a pool of blood and rainwater.In his right hand was a .38-caliber pistol. He fought back, police said. “Nanlaban.”FEATURED STORIESBut Cora recalls how Jose begged for his life before he was killed. “He was shouting for me to help him, that he was innocent,” she says, weeping. “And yet they shot him—those merciless policemen.”Cora’s anguish seems to bounce off the walls of a small room in a spiritual center in Manila, one of a few sanctuaries for survivors like herself. Here, the mothers and widows of men killed in the Duterte administration’s war on drugs try to come to terms with their loss in the course of the arduous journey toward healing.Central to these efforts is the Church, which is standing as liaison in view of state failure to address the survivors’ plight.More than providing spiritual support, the Church has mobilized civil society organizations to help meet their urgent need for psychological, financial and legal assistance.After all, healing means not just getting over their tragedy but also liberating themselves from victimhood.Filling the voidCora is one of dozens of women under the wing of activist priest Flavie Villanueva, who in 2016 launched a program to help the families of victims of extrajudicial killings (EJKs) in the drug war.Aptly called “Paghilom” (healing), it is one of several Church-led initiatives to help those whom Villanueva described as “at the peripheries of economy and faith.”It may be the only comprehensive institutional program for EJK survivors.Now ministering to its third batch, Paghilom is backed by human rights and private groups either tapped by Villanueva or that have volunteered to address five needs: food and healthcare, legal assistance, spirituality, education and livelihood.All these have to go together to truly be of help, says Edel Hernandez, executive director of Medical Action Group (MAG), which provides psychomedical help to the survivors.With the survivors stigmatized and without resources to “move on,” the goal is to empower them and provide them with the tools to rebuild their lives.In Cora’s batch are the mothers and wives from the high-profile Payatas “Tokhang” case in 2016 that won a landmark Supreme Court decision ordering the police to stay away from their homes, including Mariza Hamoy, mother of 17-year-old Darwin and one of three who filed murder charges against the “Davao Boys” from the Batasan police station, and Michelle Pineda, mother of 13-year-old Aldrinne who was shot dead by a policeman in a Tondo slaughterhouse.Opening the woundsThese are all compelling women but in their “safe space,” they are burdened by their shared narrative. Guided by psychiatrists and counselors, they tell their stories, play games, dine together — friends who found kinship in grief.At the program’s onset, MAG administers a psychological assessment test to determine the extent of the women’s trauma, which will serve as the basis for the sessions’ activities. The assessment also determines whether the women need further counseling or even medical prescriptions.The immediate need of most of the survivors is psychomedical intervention, says MAG program director Amy Abcede. In many, their loss results in mental and emotional anguish close to posttraumatic stress disorder: sleeplessness, severe anxiety, intermittent flashbacks.It’s why Mitos Kawata decided to seek refuge in Paghilom over a year after the death of her son, Hideyoshi, a graduating high school student. Hide, 17, was killed in her house at Barangay Bagong Barrio in January 2017 after allegedly confronting Caloocan police with an Uzi. The real target was her partner, Kawata says.After almost 18 months of moving from house to house across the metro in an attempt to flee the near-daily nightmare of gunshots, Kawata relented. She couldn’t stop thinking about her son. “I felt that he wouldn’t let me rest.”Even more worrisome is how the trauma manifests in children, like Hamoy’s son, Daniel, whose brother Darwin was killed along with three others in an alleged buy-bust in August 2016. The unexpected loss made Daniel, then only 6, prone to violence and fits of rage.Hamoy recalls being summoned by Daniel’s kindergarten teacher because he was always getting into fights and pulling the hair of his classmates.“We’re worried about him,” she sighs. “He always says he’d study hard to become a policeman. He says he wants to kill them all.”Healing processSuch feelings of anger can only be purged with the help of others, according to psychologist and session facilitator Nicolas Poblacion. “The survivors need to feel that they are not alone. That helps alleviate the pain and trauma.”The women consider one another sounding boards for their sorrow. On one Saturday, they sit in a bonfire circle as each recounts her story. Only a few manage without tears; the rest, like Cora, still ache at the memory.But the retelling is essential for catharsis, Poblacion says. They need to find emotional release in the comfort and audience of their fellow survivors.Meanwhile, children like Daniel engage in art therapy and games so that their grief would not turn into rage. But they prefer to run around during the sessions to observe their mothers. When the women weep during the sessions, so do the kids—an automatic response to a trauma that a mother and her child need to process together.With the program’s psychologists and legal partners, each survivor’s case is documented through affidavits and other supporting papers. The psychological harm suffered by each woman is assessed for when a reparations board, much like the one for martial law survivors, is formed in the future.But with mouths to feed, the women’s primary concern is money. Because most are unemployed or work odd jobs, Paghilom connects the families to sponsors that can provide scholarships and capital for livelihood.The women receive a travel allowance and groceries each session. “It’s challenging to be consistent,” Villanueva notes, adding: For healing to occur, they must not tire of returning.EmpowermentUnder Paghilom, 18 women in the first two batches have completed the four-month, 16-session “course.” Follow-up visits are conducted by coordinators from De La Salle University.Cora and the rest of the third batch are in their first two months. The goal is not for them to forget but to live through their “righteous indignation,” Poblacion says. “You can never take that away from them. But you want them to function so they can return to their normal life. You can only do that by shoring up their capacity to survive.”Ultimately, healing means the survivors’ empowerment—through assistance, education and the tools to pursue justice.“Once that happens, the cycle [of victimization] stops,” Hernandez says.Part 1: Healing wounds, finding a voice after nights of ‘nanlaban’Part 3: ‘Nanlaban’ victims unfazed by legal hurdles | [] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1012673/through-church-drug-war-catharsis-comes-with-tools-for-justice | Inquirer | Credible |
‘Poe to run for President’ | With Sen. Grace Poe virtually shutting the door on President Aquino’s overtures for her to team up with Interior Secretary Mar Roxas for a coalition ticket next year, senators close to the front-running presidential candidate are more certain she will run as independent.In a phone interview, Sen. Serge Osmeña said of Poe: “She is just dancing the fandango, she is just going through the motion, she has already made up her mind. She will run for President.”Sen. Vicente Sotto III said he had no doubt that Poe would run for President with her close friend, Sen. Francis Escudero, as her running mate.He said the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) was to meet before the end of the month and would likely decide to support a Poe-Escudero team in the 2016 balloting.NPC members are waiting for Poe’s final decision on whether she will seek the presidency, he said. “Many of us will be supporting her. I, for one, (will support Poe),” Sotto said.Osmeña used to be one of Poe’s advisers and mentors when she ran as an independent for senator under Team P-Noy. But he said he had broken ties with Poe. “I disagreed with some of her moves,” he said. He declined to elaborate.In previous interviews, Osmeña suggested that Poe was not yet ripe to lead the country and that she was better off as Roxas’ running mate.Monday meeting with AquinoIn a text message to the Inquirer, Poe said: “We did not set another meeting but he (Aquino) said to keep the lines of communication open.”Poe said the meeting on Monday night in Malacañang lasted five hours and that she could “sense the very difficult position the President was in.”“I understand and sympathize with his predicament and situation. In the end, we both agreed to continue, in whatever capacity, striving and working for our countrymen and for the betterment of our children’s future,” she said.The President’s one-on-one meeting with Poe Monday night followed last week’s dinner with her, Roxas and Sen. Francis Escudero.Poe said Monday’s meeting with the President was “perhaps our last meeting before the Sona (State of the Nation Address) and … we both agreed that we both have the best interest of our country in mind in whatever decisions we will make in the coming days.”Aquino has said he would announce his administration’s presidential candidate after his Sona on July 27.Osmeña surveyThe Liberal Party (LP) is expected to announce Roxas as its standard-bearer after the Sona and the President will endorse Roxas a few days later.Osmeña said that based on a survey he commissioned, Poe would win even in a crowded race contrary to an analysis of House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II that Vice President Jejomar Binay would only lose if the administration fielded a single candidate.In his survey, Osmeña said Poe had a 37-percent share ahead of Binay’s 30 percent, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s 17 percent and Roxas’ 11 percent.But Osmeña cautioned that the public preferences remained fluid and could change up to the final week or days of the election as shown in the 2010 presidential election.He noted that in the September 2009 survey, then Senator Aquino had a commanding 51-percent share in the survey with his closest rival, then Sen. Manuel Villar, with 20 percent. “By February, Aquino and Villar were statistically tied at 35 percent,” Osmeña said.He said the unpredictability of the surveys was more pronounced in the race for Vice President. He said Roxas was leading the race with a 49-percent share ahead of Sen. Loren Legarda with 30 percent and Binay with 12 percent just 15 weeks before Election Day.Sotto’s doubtsSotto expressed doubt that Poe would agree to run for Vice President next year because of her commitment to support Escudero.“I doubt it because I know for a fact that Senator Escudero is running as an independent vice-presidential candidate. I don’t think she would not want to support him. I think the commitment is to support him,” Sotto told reporters in a chance interview in Malacañang during President Aquino’s signing into law the Philippine Competition Act and the Liberalized Cabotage Law.Asked if a Poe-Escudero tandem was a done deal, Sotto replied: “That I do not know. Perhaps they are seriously considering it. That I know for a fact, seriously considering it.”Sotto earlier said Poe and Escudero were likely to get the support of the NPC. On Tuesday, he said that the NPC was to meet after the Sona.“We will discuss what will be the NPC’s position on the presidential and vice-presidential elections,” Sotto said.– | ['Gil C. Cabacungan'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706769/poe-to-run-for-president | Inquirer | Credible |
100th Fatima anniversary commemorated in stamps | The 100th anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima would be celebrated this year in the Philippines with a special stamp.The Philippine Postal Corp. (PhilPost) had released four designs of Our Lady of Fatima stamps to mark the series of Marian apparitions to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal, a century ago.The website of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said PhilPost printed 80,000 copies of the block of four stamps, which are in P12 denominations and would be available until Dec. 13 this year at the Central Post Office and post offices around the country. | ['Philippine Daily Inquirer'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/960051/100th-fatima-anniversary-commemorated-in-stamps | Inquirer | Credible |
‘Pork’ prosecutors: Outnumbered, but not outgunned | “It’s a prosecutor’s dream case, and a defense nightmare,” said Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon Gerard Mosquera, of the cases involving the pork barrel scam, which has implicated several high-profile politicians and lawmakers, among them Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Bong Revilla and Jinggoy Estrada.Despite the online bashing that the team constantly endures from a public impatient with the glacial pace of court proceedings, the head of the prosecution panel said he believed “the case will be won based on evidence, and we have the evidence.”The particular challenge they have to face, said Christine Marallag-Batacan, a member of the Ombudsman’s team handling the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam cases, is “facing the high-caliber lawyers” of the powerful politicians involved in the cases, and being outclassed by the technology their well-funded adversaries have at their disposal.“Imagine facing three law firms that has at least three high-profile lawyers each,” Batacan said of the three-member prosecution team usually fielded at each hearing.“And while we (leaf through) our papers, these [defense lawyers] scroll down (their tablets) to read the pleadings,” she added.Spectacle“It’s quite a spectacle when you see (all those defense lawyers) in court. Sometimes the court just asks them to appoint a captain,” confirms Ryan Hartzell Balisacan of the intimidating scene that their outnumbered team contends with. At 31, Balisacan is one of the youngest member of the PDAF team.But while outnumbered, they are not outgunned, the Ombudsman’s team declared.They have in fact been winning points in the lopsided court battle to try one of the biggest corruption cases that this scandal-weary nation had ever seen.Some one and a half years since the start of proceedings, the 35-member PDAF team is counting on the strength of its evidence to cope with what is expected to be a tedious trial of eight graft, plunder and malversation cases against several accused.Already, the team had scored victories at the preliminary stage and bail hearings at the Sandiganbayan, where the alleged brains, businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles and her cohorts, have been accused of funneling taxpayer money into bogus nongovernment organizations.Also on trial are Napoles’ alleged accomplices in government: Senators Enrile, Revilla Jr., and Jinggoy and five former members of the House of Representatives: Masbate Gov. Rizalina Seachon-Lanete, Edgar Valdez of the Association of Philippine Electric Cooperatives, Rodolfo Plaza of Agusan del Sur, Samuel Dangwa of Benguet, and Constantino Jaraula of Cagayan de Oro City.WinningOf the accused senators, only Enrile had been granted bail through the controversial Supreme Court ruling that cited humanitarian reasons for the exception from detention rules.Most recently, the Ombudsman won the antigraft court’s favor when the latter junked Estrada’s bail plea on Jan. 7, citing prosecution evidence that Estrada was alongside Napoles “at the apex of the PDAF scam.”“We’re winning these cases… The only incidents that had not gone the prosecution’s way were the motions to transfer the accused to a regular jail,” said Mosquera.“But, practically, 90 percent of the incidents have gone the prosecution’s way…Our evidence is strong, our witnesses are all complete, our documents are all intact. We have a very strong case, a good set of prosecutors and a good strategy,” he added.According to the website of the Office of the Ombudsman, the independent office headed by the stern former Supreme Court Associate Justice Conchita Carpio Morales, scored a75-percent conviction rate in cases it had handled as of September 2015.UnfairSuch relative success is a little known fact to the public, said Batacan, adding that people and the media could sometimes be unfair in judging the capabilities of government prosecutors.“It’s like the public is always too quick to judge against the prosecutors. Their general impression is [that] prosecutors are slow…but they don’t really see what happens in court,” added the acting director at one of the Ombudsman’s prosecution bureaus.“In the court, there will be arguments. When a justice states a ruling, it’s usually done in high pitch…and we cannot respond the same way. So for an observer, it might come off that the justice is angry. But (that’s) normal,” said Deputy Special Prosecutor Manuel Soriano Jr.But they understand how much the public wants to see results, the prosecutors added. And already, hearings on the PDAF cases are being held thrice a week, more frequently than other cases.“The public wants convictions because in their eyes, these (people) stole our money. But why are the cases taking too long?” asked Joefferson Toribio, another PDAF team member.“Sometimes, the delays are attributed to us when in fact it’s the usual judicial proceeding,” Toribio said, adding that the defense regularly files motions for delay in court.Personal costThe PDAF cases have also exacted a heavy personal cost from these mostly young team members.Soriano, a father of three, said he missed sharing quality time with his young family, while Batacan had to turn down friends’ invitations to book piso-fare flights. Most of the prosecutors also have to work through the night, on weekends and holidays to finish the pleadings and prepare for the hearings.“I’ve had so many sleepless nights, especially after reading the negative (media) reports,” said Soriano.Despite the hurt and the exhaustion, everything has been worth it, the team said.“I don’t want to be too melodramatic about it, but when you like what you’re doing, it doesn’t really feel like work,” said Balisacan, who took a massive pay cut after opting out of a private law firm.“No offense to those in the private sector, but here, our concept of ‘client’ is more amorphous. Because our client is the Republic of the Philippines,” he added.RELATED STORIES20 lawmakers tied to new P500M pork scamLifetime ban imposed on 12 execs tied to pork scamPork scam accused Janet, hubby face P60-M tax case | ['Tarra Quismundo'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/756110/pork-prosecutors-outnumbered-but-not-outgunned | Inquirer | Credible |
Negros drug suspect links more police officers to payola | A Negros Occidental-based drug suspect who claims to have delivered protection money to law enforcement personnel has implicated more policemen in the illegal drug trade.In a 19-page supplemental affidavit subscribed on March 10, Ricky Serenio elaborated on his Jan. 13 affidavit and named eight police officials and two purported agents of the National Bureau of Investigation.He claimed that they received from P40,000 to P200,000 per month.Serenio also said 35 kilograms of “shabu” (methamphetamine hydrochloride) were distributed monthly to eight cities and towns in Negros Occidental from the Berya group.These included 15 kg in Bacolod City, five kg each in the cities of Kabankalan and Cadiz, and two kg each in the cities of La Carlota, Silay, Talisay and Bago, and the town of Murcia.He reiterated his accusation in his first affidavit against Senior Supt. William Señoron, Negros Occidental police director, claiming that the official received P1.2 million monthly from drug lords in the province.Serenio, 34, accused Señoron of having received protection money from slain Iloilo drug lord Melvin Odicta when the police official headed the Regional Intelligence Unit of the Police Regional Office in Western Visayas based in Iloilo City.“I deny that. Those are all lies,” Señoron told the Inquirer in a telephone interview. He declined to elaborate.In his statement issued after Serenio came out with his first affidavit, Señoron said he was a victim of a “name and shame” strategy by those who wanted him out of the province.He also had said Serenio “allowed himself to be transformed into somebody else’s mad dog.”Police arrested Serenio on Jan. 7 for grave coercion and illegal possession of firearms and explosives. He was initially detained at the Talisay City police station.Citing security reasons, the Bacolod City Regional Trial Court Branch 54 ordered Serenio’s commitment to the Pulupundan municipal police station “under the care and custody” of the town’s mayor, Miguel Peña, and his father, Moises Padilla Mayor Magdaleno Peña, a consultant of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.Serenio was recently released after posting bail.In his first affidavit, Serenio named 35 policemen and other law enforcement personnel as having received protection money from the Berya drug group, one of the largest in the province. | ['Nestor P. Burgos Jr.'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/884339/negros-drug-suspect-links-more-police-officers-to-payola | Inquirer | Credible |
Minister detained by armed guards escapes; corrupt INC practices bared | A loyal servant of the church all his life, 65-year-old Isaias Samson Jr., a second-generation minister of Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), found himself and his family captives in their own home on Thursday.His wife, who just had heart surgery, nearly passed out because of the tension as the couple and their only son were placed “under house arrest” in their townhouse in Tierre Bella, a Quezon City subdivision just behind the INC headquarters where the group housed its ministers.The family was under the constant watch of armed guards, some carrying high-powered firearms. (Samson did not disclose the names of his wife and son for security reasons).“It was torture actually. We didn’t know what was going on outside, what they planned to do,” Samson said.“INC people have been trained to obey and follow the word of God, and if ever a member of the INC has committed an error or mistake, the immediate thing to do is to repent, change his way of life. But that’s not what’s happening now, in what I’ve seen to be the work of the Sanggunian,” he said in Filipino, referring to the INC governing body, the elders’ council.Samson surfaced in a hastily called press conference in Manila on Thursday evening and detailed his weeklong ordeal at the hands of certain members of the INC Sanggunian.Ministers kidnappedHe confirmed the reported kidnapping of at least 10 INC ministers in a fast-escalating power struggle within the group, tagging military and police officials (as the culprits) in the ministers’ detention.Samson, suspended last week and removed as editor in chief of the INC’s official publication, Pasugo (God’s Message), also confirmed unrest within what had been long known as a tight-knit congregation, with many harboring “resentment” toward leaders for questionable financial practices.His disclosures came just after Cristina “Tenny” Villanueva Manalo, widow of the late INC Executive Minister Eraño Manalo, and son Felix Nathaniel “Angel” Villanueva Manalo posted a video on YouTube pleading for help.“They took our cell phones, the computer in my office, they took our passports and laptop,” Samson said.His detention began after the Sanggunian accused him of writing damning articles against INC under the name Antonio Ebangelista, whose blog posts about alleged wrongdoings in INC have been making the rounds of social media.Samson denied any knowledge of the articles.He said he believed he was also among those “taken,” as he had several times expressed his opposition to the decisions of INC’s general auditor, Glicerio Santos Jr.The decrees of Santos and other INC officials, particularly activities involving members’ donations, had drawn protests from several ministers, he said.“They saw the wrongs that were happening, that’s why some ministers had resentment [against certain officials],” Samson said.In INC’s outreach programs, for instance, including activities held for the benefit of victims of the 2013 Supertyphoon “Yolanda,” Samson said ministers and other workers (those ranked below minister) complained about being charged extra: for shirts in one activity, and for sacks of rice in another.Asked for a ballpark figure, Samson said “it could” be in the millions of pesos.On Saturday, the second day of his detention, Samson said certain officials also forced him “to do an interview” and deny allegations that the expelled Manalos had made public.“They wanted me to say that the statements (of Angel and Tenny Manalo) made were not true and that the abductions of ministers were also not true,” he said.It was not clear if doing so was a ticket to his freedom. But he said he refused because he could not tell lies.Escape from detentionThe family began to think of ways to escape, he said. “But it was hard because I saw ministers and officials around our house until 2:30 a.m.,” he said.With nothing else he could do, he said he and his family turned to prayer, and their prayer was answered.“As a minister of the Iglesia, I have faith in God. So we told our guards we wanted to go to church,” said Samson, who was born into the INC and followed the footsteps of his father, Isaias Sr., as a minister.His son drove the family out of their townhouse at 5:30 a.m. By some miracle, he said, they noticed that the guards were no longer following them. They decided to drive straight to a safe, undisclosed place.“If they did that to us, why can’t they do it to others? I know what they did was illegal detention,” Samson said.He said he could not serve under officials who peddled lies.“[They committed] kidnapping, grave threats. These are the reasons why I could not bear the thought that our brethren in the Iglesia could do that. I don’t know why they are doing that,” he said.“I love my role as a minister but I cannot serve if those above me are implementing things that are dishonest,” he said.Samson said he knew of at least 10 other ministers being held in different locations: several at the Rosalia Compound on Tandang Sora Avenue, and one minister, Lowell Menorca II, at the city jail in Dasmariñas, Cavite province.“Perhaps that’s one of the questionable things. How these people have this kind of power, that’s very dangerous,” he said.He said he could not believe that Tenny and Angel Manalo had been expelled: “Never in my life did I ever think that would happen,” he said.Asked whether there was an organized reform movement within the INC, Samson said he did not know.“I am a reformist but I am not a member of any group,” he said.He said he was currently taking care of his family’s security, but wary of going to authorities for protection.“You know, in this country, sometimes you want to trust someone, but you can’t be sure you can trust him. So we’re doing it our own way,” Samson said.He said his faith in the INC remains despite the turmoil.“INC is not bad. It’s just that there are some people who are doing these things,” he said.“I believe there is an end to everything, even evil. There’s justice from the Lord. He never sleeps,” he added.Power struggleOther INC members spoke about alleged mismanagement, corruption and bankruptcy under the leadership of Eduardo Manalo.An Inquirer source, who was privy to the affairs of the Manalo family, said the infighting among the heirs had been going on since the death of Eraño in 2009.The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tenny and the five siblings of Eduardo resented their being “purged” from key positions in businesses ran by INC. Their allies were also removed, the source said.An INC source said Tenny and Angel tried to mount a “power play.”The source said the siblings accused Eduardo of pushing INC to the brink of bankruptcy with massive projects such as Philippine Arena, the $200-million cost of which was allegedly padded to give commissions and kickbacks to people close to the executive minister.President Aquino and Manalo inaugurated Philippine Arena on July 21 last year, a week before the INC celebrated its 100th anniversary.The 55,000-seat Philippine Arena, located in Ciudad de Victoria, a 140-hectare tourism zone in Santa Maria, Bulacan province, was declared the world’s largest indoor arena by Guinness World Records.It was supposed to be the venue of a concert in December last year by R&B star Chris Brown, which fell through because Brown allegedly lost his passport and could not come to the Philippines.P1B mansion?With INC’s finances in trouble since the completion of Philippine Arena last year, the source said, Eduardo sold off the group’s properties to cover losses caused by his bad business decisions.The source said the siblings believed Eduardo was receiving “bad advice” from ministers who were out to enrich themselves and remove his mother and siblings from INC’s institutional and business operations.According to the source, senior ministers received information that Eduardo bought a mansion worth P1 billion in an exclusive community in Makati City.The source said the mother and siblings and their loyal followers were threatened with expulsion from INC if they opposed Eduardo’s decisions.But an INC member who has access to Eduardo’s inner circle said ordinary members were unaffected by the family feud.“For ordinary members, the only person that matters is our leader, Ka Eduardo. Anybody who fights or disrespects our leader will be punished,” said the INC source.The source said Eduardo dealt with the controversy a few days ago, denying accusations of corruption and that INC was fast running out of cash.The source explained that the sale of properties did not mean INC was going bankrupt but that the group was putting the idle properties to more productive use.If INC was bankrupt, the source said, how could it afford to build more than 100 chapels all at the same time, with each structure costing at least P20 million?Another source said the authority of Eduardo was not under question, but the direction of INC was.“Many members feel that the temporal power of the church is being emphasized too much in contravention of Jesus Christ’s teaching that ‘My kingdom is not of this world.’ This would not have happened if Ka Erdy were alive,” said the source, a lay member who is privy to leadership matters in the group.The source said a number of senior ministers had also noticed how Eduardo and the INC’s 12-member elders’ council, the group’s highest advisory body, were disbursing members’ donations for activities not related to religion.Among those activities, the source said, was the construction of the Philippine Arena.Citing one of the INC’s basic teachings, the source said money donated to the group must be used only to finance church-related infrastructure like “imposing churches” and houses for retired ministers.“There was strong opposition to the construction of Philippine Arena. They were questioning why the church had to build an edifice that was not devoted to worship,” the source said.Philippine Arena is owned and operated by Maligaya Development Corp. (MDC).“While MDC is composed of church members, it’s still a private corporation whose intention is to earn profits,” said the source.RELATED STORIESINC leaders fighting over use of funds, building of PH Arena – sourceManalo kin held to cover up INC scam? | ['Gil C. Cabacungan', 'Marlon Ramos', 'Tarra Quismundo'] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/707346/minister-detained-by-armed-guards-escapes-corrupt-inc-practices-bared | Inquirer | Credible |
Appeal to preserve Samar’s forests | An official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is calling on the people of Samar to help preserve Samar’s forests.Carlito Tuballa, DENR EasternVisayas Assistant Regional Director for Technical Services, issued the appeal following the confiscation of illegally cut timber in the island.Tuballa said that while apprehended timber was considered negligible, it underlines the fact that timber poaching could escalate if left alone.Tuballa said the participation of the public and other stakeholders is crucial in preserving Samar’s forests, because DENR cannot do it alone.He pointed out that the survival of the Philippine eagle and other wildlife in the area depends on the condition of the remaining forests in the island.Samar’s forests also have thousands of springs and rivers that are sources of potable water and irrigation.Tuballa said the destruction of the forests will impact on the island’s biodiversity and result in the disappearance of many wildlife. | [] | 18/11/2017 0:00 | https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/11/18/appeal-to-preserve-samars-forests/ | Manila Bulletin | Credible |