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Marc Pingris speaks out vs affair rumors with Kim Rodriguez
Former Philippine Basketball Association star player Marc Pingris denied having an affair with actress Kim Rodriguez......»»
Kaspersky Shares Cybersecurity Tips for a Peaceful Getaway during the holy week
As the holiday season approaches, the urge to unwind and kick back is natural. And it’s all too common for people to let their guard down completely when connecting to the Internet too– but shouldn’t. Recently, the Philippine National Police (PNP) Anti-Cybercrime Group shared its findings on identity theft cases in the country. Between November […].....»»
Oplan Harabas yields 3 drivers positive for drugs
FOLLOWING the surprise drug test conducted by the Land Transportation Office (LTO)-Davao and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on public utility vehicles (PUVs) last March 26, 2024, two taxi drivers in Davao City were found to be positive for drugs......»»
Mandaue drug bust: P476,000 ‘shabu’ seized from HVI
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Authorities seized suspected shabu worth at least P476,000 from a 45-year-old man described as a high-value individual during an anti-illegal drugs operation in Mandaue City early on Wednesday morning, March 27, 2024. The operation took place along Realty Road in the North Reclamation Area in Barangay Subangdaku, Mandaue City, Cebu. The.....»»
Fake booking scams up – ACG
Fake booking scams increased in the second week of March, the Anti-Cybercrime Group of the Philippine National Police reported yesterday......»»
Fully independent PHI-NADO pushed
With the WADA compliance issue settled and cleared, the Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine National Anti-Doping Organization are moving forward and making sure that all bases are covered from hereon......»»
Drug killings 95 percent lower than in previous admin
The number of deaths recorded under the Marcos administration’s war on drugs has decreased by over 95 percent, in contrast to the bloody anti-drug campaign of his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte......»»
Women shaping Philippine monetary policy
Women have made significant strides as leaders in the Philippine financial services industry even as challenges continue to persist. At the helm are two distinguished female members of the Monetary Board (MB) – the policy-setting body of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) –both of whom are breaking the bias for women in finance......»»
Mga bagong opisyal ng SPEEd nanumpa kay Mayor Joy Belmonte
PORMAL nang nanumpa sa kanilang tungkulin ang mga bagong-halal na opisyal at miyembro ng Society of Philippine Entertainment Editors (SPEEd) kahapon, Marso 21. Ito’y pinangunahan ng bagong Pangulo ng grupo na si Salve Asis, entertainment editor ng Pilipino Star Ngayon at Pang Masa. Nagsilbing inducting officer sa oath-taking ceremony ng SPEEd si Quezon City Mayor.....»»
Marcos Jr to boost Philippines sports anti-dope body
To strengthen the country’s compliance with international rules against the use of drugs in sports, President Marcos is amenable to increasing the manpower of the Philippine National Anti-Doping Organization – the accredited anti-doping organization under the Philippine Sports Commission or PSC......»»
PSC turns to Marcos on compliance issue with world anti-doping body
The Philippine Sports Commission will seek no less than President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. help when it contests the non-compliance accusation of the World Anti-Doping Agency that has now been elevated to the Court of Arbitration for Sport for resolution......»»
CHR hails conviction of three cops who abused traffic violator
The recent decision of a Koronodal City court to convict three police officers for violating the Anti-Torture Act of 2009 is a “significant milestone” and the fourth conviction scored by the CHR overall under the law, the human rights body said......»»
Anti-red tape body files 66 cases in court
At least 66 criminal cases were slapped against government workers for offenses violating Republic Act 11032, or the Ease of Doing Business Law, the Anti-Red Tape Authority said yesterday......»»
Philippine sports body allays fears of Olympic, Asiad, SEA Games ban
Fears of a potential ban from participating in the Olympics, Asian and Southeast Asian Games were quashed by the Philippine Sports Commission, saying it has adhered to what were required by the World Anti-Doping Agency and close to completing everything it was asked for......»»
‘Hands off our war!’
Israel’s Ambassador to the Philippines, Ilan Fluss, stressed yesterday that his country does not want the United Nations to interfere in its war against the extremist group Hamas, which killed at least 1,400 people, mostly Israeli civilians, in an unprecedented attack last 7 October. In a roundtable discussion with DAILY TRIBUNE editors and reporters, Fluss accused the UN of having a long-standing anti-Israel bias as he brushed aside a UN Security Council call for a “humanitarian pause” in the conflict. The UN was founded 78 years ago to the day today, on 24 October 1945. “We’re in a war against Hamas, which is like the war in Afghanistan (following the 11 September 2001 or 9/11 terror attacks against the United States),” said Fluss, describing the attack by Hamas as second only in barbarity to what Israelis faced during the holocaust. Hitler’s Nazi Germany exterminated about six million European Jews from 1941 to 1945 during the Holocaust in World War 2. The genocide would spur the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. “We will make sure that there’s no humanitarian crisis as much as possible, and we are trying hard to minimize the casualties there,” he said, explaining that the airstrikes in the Gaza Strip are targeting well-known Hamas enclaves. Israel, with about 300,000 soldiers and armor massed at its border with Gaza, has expressed an intent to launch a ground offensive to rout Hamas, without occupying the territory it left in 2005. Fluss pointed out that civilians in Gaza are being warned in advance of the attacks, with pleas made for them to relocate to its south, away from the fighting. War on terror “Our objective in this war is to ensure that Hamas will no longer be able to attack Israel like it did. We will remove their capability in a war that is solely against Hamas and not the Palestinians,” Fluss said. The envoy stressed that Israel is not against delivering humanitarian aid to the civilians in Gaza, while stressing Israel’s right to protect its citizens against terrorist groups like Hamas, the Islamic Jihad and the Hezbollah in Lebanon. Fluss said that nobody, not even the UN, can stop Israel from a war that it did not start, one that was “forced on us” by Hamas with the latter’s massacre of innocent Israelis, including women and children. Enemies of Israel He explained that while the Philippines enjoys recognition by all countries, Israel has for decades, if not centuries, been trying to be recognized as a state with the right to exist peacefully. But Fluss lamented that the UN has been passing resolutions — at least 20 every year — “which are anti-Israel, (resolutions) that take the Palestinian narrative.” “There is no recognition of the Israeli narrative. The bias against Israel in the UN is well-known,” he said. He said that the UN and its agencies, like the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, otherwise referred to as the UN Relief and Works Agency or UNRWA, have allowed themselves to be used by the enemies of Israel. Fluss cited as an example the use by Hamas of UNRWA facilities, supplies and even marked vehicles in attacking Israel. UNRWA had been accused in the past of perpetuating destabilizing events in order to have a perpetual supply of refugees to justify its existence and funding. It has over 18,900 staff working in 138 countries. Israel, as the lone Jewish state in the UN, is ranged against an automatic majority of countries that support the Palestinian initiatives. The Arab League has 22 members in the UN, while the Organization of Islamic Cooperation has 57 members. It may be recalled that a number of Arab countries had banded together to wage wars against Israel, including in 1948 during its founding. The UN has also accommodated Palestinians many times in the past. In October 1974, or 14 years before the Palestine Liberation Organization nominally forswore terrorism, the UN General Assembly voted to invite it to send a spokesperson to take part in its deliberations. No one who was not a representative of a government — except the Pope, and even he was the head of a quasi-state — had ever before been granted such a privilege. The vote to extend the invitation was overwhelming, 105 to 4, with only the United States, Israel, and two Latin American governments opposed. The assembled delegates heard Yasser Arafat proclaim the necessity of getting at the “historical roots” of the issue, namely, “the Jewish invasion of Palestine [that] began in 1881,” and addressing it with a “radical antidote,” rather than “a slavish obeisance to the present.” Expulsion try In 1975, the foreign ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference were determined to have Israel expelled from the UN. The PLO lined up support for this move at a meeting of the African states while training its sights on a ministerial meeting of the NAM (Non-Aligned Movement) scheduled a month later, in August 1975, in Lima, Peru. Washington then objected. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger delivered a major speech on the subject, with a thinly veiled warning that the United States might turn its back on the United Nations. In addition to Washington’s hard line, the drive to expel Israel was also slowed by disarray within the Arab’s ranks. The most decisive factor that disrupted the expulsion move was the surprising position of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who announced his opposition to it because “Israel must be present at the United Nations if it is expected to comply with its resolutions.” Israel’s enemies soon came up with an alternative that again targeted Israel through a resolution of the General Assembly, echoing Arafat and Soviet propagandists who declared Zionism to be “a form of racism.” In 1982, the body declared that Israel “is not a peace-loving member state and that it has not carried out its obligations under the Charter.” Likewise, the UN General Assembly has voted each year on 70 to 100 resolutions, including from 15 to 20 resolutions pejorative to Israel. Of all General Assembly resolutions that criticize a particular country, three-quarters apply to Israel. The relentless recitation of UN declarations reinforces the conviction in the Arab world that all right lies on the Arab side and that Israel is irredeemably evil. The post ‘Hands off our war!’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Scores killed in Gaza strikes as new aid convoy arrives
Scores of Palestinians were killed in central Gaza on Sunday after Israel stepped up its strikes on the war-torn enclave and another convoy of 17 aid trucks arrived as the Hamas-run territory faces "catastrophic" shortages. With the violence raging unchecked, Iran said the region could spiral "out of control". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stark warning to Lebanon's Hezbollah, saying getting involved would be "the mistake of its life". Washington warned any actors looking to inflame the conflict that it would not hesitate to act in the event of any "escalation". Hamas militants in Gaza stormed across the border into Israel on 7 October, launching a raid that killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians who were shot, mutilated, or burnt to death on the first day, according to Israeli officials. They also seized more than 200 hostages in the worst-ever attack in Israel's history. Israel has hit back with a relentless bombing campaign that has so far killed more than 4,600 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to Gaza's health ministry. Officials said the central town of Deir al-Balah had been particularly badly hit overnight from Saturday to Sunday. The ministry said at least 80 people had been killed in the overnight raids on central Gaza, which destroyed more than 30 homes. At the hospital morgue, an AFP journalist saw the bodies of many children on the bloodied floor, where distraught families wept as they identified the victims. Among them was a man clutching his dead toddler and a young boy who pulled back a blanket over his little sister's body. "My cousin was sleeping in his house with his daughter in his arms. He was a man with no record, nothing to do with the resistance," said Wael Wafi, gazing at the body of his cousin, his arm still wrapped around his three-year-old daughter Misk. Also Sunday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that 29 of its staff had been killed since the start of the war in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying half of them were teachers. On Saturday it had given a toll of 17. The scale of the bombing has left basic systems unable to function. The UN said dozens of unidentified bodies had been buried in a mass grave in Gaza City because cold storage had run out. Meanwhile, an Israeli soldier was killed near the Gaza border by an anti-tank missile fired by militants inside the enclave, the army said. 'Accident' as Israel hits Egypt post Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant warned the war with Hamas could take months. "It will take one month, two months, three months, and at the end, there will be no more Hamas," Gallant said. A second convoy of 17 trucks of aid entered Gaza from Egypt on Sunday following an initial delivery of 20 trucks on Saturday after intensive negotiations and US pressure. Separately, an AFP journalist saw six trucks leaving Rafah after filling up from dwindling fuel stocks held at the crossing as the enclave faces catastrophic shortages after Israel cut off supplies of food, water, fuel, and electricity. It later resumed water supplies to the south on 15 October. Although Egyptian media said another 40 trucks would enter Gaza on Monday, the UN says the enclave needs 100 trucks per day to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.4 million residents. And so far, there have been no deliveries of fuel, with UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini warning Sunday that supplies would run out "in three days". "Without fuel, there will be no water, no functioning hospitals, and... aid will not reach many civilians in desperate need," he said. The Hamas government said 165,000 housing units -- half of those in the entire Gaza Strip -- had been destroyed in the raids. With fears growing that the conflict could spread, Israel on Sunday admitted accidentally hitting an Egyptian border post, apologizing for the incident which Cairo said had left an unspecified number of border guards with "minor injuries". Risk of regional escalation There were fresh exchanges of fire over Israel's northern border with Lebanon as fears grew that Hezbollah, a close ally of Hamas and Iran, could enter the conflict, prompting Israel's Netanyahu to warn it would be "the mistake of its life". "We will strike it with a force it cannot even imagine, and the significance for it and the state of Lebanon will be devastating," he said. Iran also warned about the conflict spreading on Sunday, with top diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian cautioning that if Washington and Israel did not "immediately stop the crime against humanity and genocide in Gaza.. the region will go out of control". But Washington said it wouldn't hesitate to act in the event of any "escalation", just hours after the Pentagon moved to step up military readiness in the region. "If any group or any country is looking to widen this conflict and take advantage of this very unfortunate situation that we see, our advice is: don't," US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on ABC News. On Sunday, Pope Francis used his weekly Angelus prayer in Rome to plead for an end to the bloodshed. "War is always a defeat, it is a destruction of human fraternity. Brothers, stop!" he said. He later held a 20-minute conversation with US President Joe Biden about "conflict situations in the world and the need to identify paths to peace", the Vatican said. Biden later discussed with war with the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, and Italy, the White House said. The US president also held talks with Netanyahu, said the White House, adding: "The leaders affirmed that there will now be continued flow of this critical assistance into Gaza." In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron's office announced he would be traveling to Israel on Tuesday for talks with Netanyahu. Protesters marched in several European capitals on Sunday. At least 10,000 people rallied in support of Israel in Berlin as Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to stamp out a resurgence of anti-Semitic incidents linked to the Israel-Hamas conflict. Thousands gathered in Paris to demand an end to Israel's operation in Gaza, the first pro-Palestinian rally in the French capital that wasn't banned on security grounds. The post Scores killed in Gaza strikes as new aid convoy arrives appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Principled peace
Self-defense is essential for a nation’s survival, which was what the United States veto of the United Nations resolution calling for “humanitarian pauses” in Israel’s campaign against Hamas was all about. Based on a formula that Brazil and Russia drafted, the resolution was meant to allow aid delivery to the war zone, mainly in northern Gaza. Under United Nations rules, a “no” vote by any of the five permanent members of the Security Council stops action on any proposal. The body’s permanent members are China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States. Russia had proposed two amendments to the UN resolution seeking a ceasefire that the SC rejected. Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia’s proposal came with its warning that anyone who did not support Russia’s draft resolution “bears responsibility for what happens.” Coming from Russia, the call for moral responsibility in Israel’s war against terror was somewhat off, considering its ongoing campaign to occupy Ukraine. In delivering the veto, US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the “resolution did not mention Israel’s right of self-defense.” “Israel has the inherent right of self-defense as reflected in Article 51 of the UN Charter,” she said. Thomas-Greenfield noted that the Security Council had reaffirmed the right in previous resolutions on terrorist attacks. “This resolution should have done the same,” she said. UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward said her country abstained from voting on the resolution as the text needed to clarify Israel’s inherent right to self-defense. She pointed out that the resolution also ignored that extremist group Hamas, which controls Gaza, uses Palestinian civilians as human shields. “They (Hamas) have embedded themselves in civilian communities and made the Palestinian people their victims too,” she said. She reiterated the UK’s support for Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas, to rescue hostages, and to strengthen its security in the long term while calling on Israel “to take all feasible precautions” to avoid harming Palestinian civilians. The argument of the UK is the source of the dilemma in the current conflict — saving civilians but with the responsibility falling solely on the shoulders of Israel. Hamas, a terrorist organization, is not bound by, therefore is not expected to follow, UN resolutions. Directing Israel to implement a ceasefire, even momentarily, puts it at a disadvantage since Hamas and its terror allies will continue to fire their rockets while consolidating their forces. War indeed brings horrors that should not happen in a civilized world. Human frailty is brought to the fore by the greed and ambition of the terror organization, stripped of religious embellishment. Hamas wants to drive out the Israelis and establish a kingdom to rule over the Palestinians. A spokesperson of the Israeli Defense Forces said resolute action is necessary against Hamas to end its reign of terror and prevent the recurrence of its recent attack on civilians. The surprise assault on 7 October resulted in the slaughter of 1,400 mostly civilian Israelis. Israel then declared war on Hamas, which rules the Palestinian government, vowing to hold it accountable for the massacre. Hamas uses treachery and guile, digging bunkers and underground communities in civilian areas to evade the Israeli forces. The terror group uses the propaganda mill to elicit tacit support from countries with anti-Israel sentiments. It uses the Israeli airstrikes on its facilities that cause civilian casualties as leverage to get the Israeli operations to stop. The UN, as the organization relied on to keep the peace in the region, has failed to provide a fair and rational solution to the conflict. The post Principled peace appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
NGOs question occupational permits given to prostituted women
NGOs in Davao City question the occupational permits given to prostituted women, stating that selling one's body for sex should not be classified as legitimate work. Referring to prostituted women as 'pokpok' or 'sex workers' only exacerbates discrimination against them, rather than addressing the root cause of the issue. Jeanette Ampog, executive director of Talikala Incorporated, argues that the term 'sex workers' fails to accurately portray the exploitative situations these women face, and instead, glamorizes their predicament. There are existing laws against prostitution, such as Republic Act (RA) Number 11930 (Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children), RA 7610 (Special Protection of Children Against Child Abuse), RA 9710 (Magna Carta of Women), and a local ordinance in Davao in its second reading for OSAEC, but Ampog expressed hope that it would pass the final reading. This, she believes, would signal the commitment of the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Davao to fund programs for prostituted women. Lawig Bubai and Talikala called on government bodies, non-government groups, and faith-based organizations to address the root causes of prostitution.....»»
5 vote buying DQ cases filed by Comelec, warns LGU of prohibitions
The Commission on Elections has begun filing petitions against the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections candidates allegedly involved in vote buying on 6 October. Out of the 40 complaints being investigated, the Comelec poll board submitted five disqualification petitions, according to Comelec Deputy Executive for Operations Rafael Olano. He added that the Committee on Vote Buying has received complaints from the public on various platforms, including Facebook and messages which contained screenshots or images. "All of these complaints came from voters. We verified and evaluated them for possible filing of disqualification cases “he said. Olano confirmed that one of the five candidates under investigation for disqualification is involved in a BSK bet showing up at a local government unit aid distribution, which he claimed to be qualified as vote buying. “There were local government officials, mayors distributing relief but the BSKE candidate was present and was allowed to speak," he said. After the official filing of candidacy, it was claimed that another BSK candidate distributed financial aid out of his pocket. Prior to the election, the poll body warned candidates of its strict measures which prohibit the distribution of ballers, t-shirts, caps, and anything else of worth under the suspicion of vote buying and selling. Comelec Commissioner Ernesto Ferdinand Maceda Jr. reminded LGU officials to be aware of such prohibitions during a separate briefing. "If they conduct assistance programs, they should not let BSKE candidates join them, lest they be disqualified,” he said. Maceda added that the Comelec would consider potential reinforcing techniques if similar incidents persist as the campaign period drew closer. “We will study how to reprimand them or take appropriate actions,” he said. In the end, Maceda stressed that the poll body is “dead serious” about its exclusion warning in order to assure not just the validity and honesty of the BSK polls but also to raise the bar for campaigning standards across the nation and the importance of each BSK candidate’s character. As of Friday, the Task Force Anti-Epal had filed an additional 10 disqualification petitions against candidates who were allegedly involved in premature campaigning while the Committee on Kontra Bigay had filed five disqualification cases for vote buying. Overall, there are 82 petitions for premature campaigning, 5,169 show cause orders, and 1,132 responses from the BSK bets. The post 5 vote buying DQ cases filed by Comelec, warns LGU of prohibitions appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
WADA warns of ‘consequences’ over North Korean flag at Asian Games
The World Anti-Doping Agency warned the Olympic Council of Asia of "consequences" on Friday for allowing the North Korean flag to be repeatedly flown at the Asian Games, saying they were treating it "extremely seriously". WADA declared North Korea's national anti-doping body "non-compliant" in 2021 and imposed sanctions that remain today. They include not being able to fly its flag at any regional, continental, or world sports event, excluding the Olympics and Paralympics. Despite this North Korea carried the flag at the Asian Games opening ceremony and it has been routinely hoisted in Hangzhou when their athletes won medals. OCA chief Raja Randhir Singh last week defended allowing the North Korean flag to be flown, saying the governing body of the sport in Asia had written to WADA "explaining their position". In a statement to AFP, WADA said the OCA had breached its obligations as a signatory to its anti-doping code. "WADA takes this matter extremely seriously and has written to the OCA on several occasions before and after the opening ceremony of the Games, explaining in clear terms the possible consequences that could arise for the OCA if this matter is ignored," it said. "WADA is disappointed that the OCA has to date not taken steps to comply with the terms of the DPRK's non-compliance," it added, using an acronym for North Korea. "WADA will follow due process to ensure that the appropriate consequences are imposed for the OCA's refusal to meet its signatory obligations." There are a range of punishments WADA could impose on the Kuwait-based OCA. They include having International Olympic Committee (IOC) funding withdrawn, OCA events losing their status as qualifying events for the Olympic or Paralympic Games, and the imposition of fines. OCA declined to comment when approached by AFP. 'Protecting athletes' The Montreal-based WADA sanctioned North Korea while its already tight borders were shut following the outbreak of COVID-19, which prevented international testing authorities from being able to enter. North Korea recently began slowly reopening and WADA said it had started to allow them back in to collect samples. "However, the broader political status of the country means verification and quality control activities are not straightforward," it added. "WADA will continue to work to strengthen the anti-doping system in DPRK in order to protect all athletes." Despite its years-long isolation from the global sporting arena, North Korea has produced some eye-opening results on its return, notably in weightlifting, where its competitors have smashed six world records. Several rival lifters said they were "shocked" or "surprised" at the results. No North Korean weightlifters will participate in next year's Paris Olympics because they failed to take part in mandatory qualifying events earlier this year. The International Weightlifting Federation said all athletes in the sport had been tested at least once at the Hangzhou Games. While the IWF does not hold jurisdiction over the Asian Games, it does have responsibility for verifying athlete whereabouts submissions under anti-doping rules. That rule required information to be provided for a minimum of three months before any competition. Two North Koreans failed to comply and were barred, the IWF said. The post WADA warns of ‘consequences’ over North Korean flag at Asian Games appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»