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After being ‘unbothered,’ Tokhang chief Dela Rosa admits fear of going to jail
Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa, former Philippine National Police chief, said that he is afraid of being imprisoned following rumors that the International Criminal Court is currently conducting a probe into the alleged human rights violations in the Philippines......»»
Budget season
Marathon meetings were held this week in the Senate and the House of Representatives in line with the budget season leading to the approval of the ever-increasing P5.7-trillion budget for 2024. The yearly “budget-serye” (budget series) never fails to disappoint in bringing out issues that extract the tiniest of details in our government that are given monetary figures in the form of public funds, amounting to millions and even billions of pesos. And every year, we see how the majority gets its way, especially early in the Administration, such as where we are right now. My biggest pet peeve in these sessions is the consistent usage of incompetent sponsors for specific government offices who deserve much better. These sponsors, whose mandate is to defend their sponsored government office before the increasingly knowledgeable and wise interpolators, must be technically and legally verbose and experts in the Philippine budget process. Clearly, this is all wishful thinking since we see neophyte, inarticulate, incapable, yet extremely loyal sponsors who would do anything to prove their worth to the powers that be, even if it means being humiliated and trending on social media for the wrong reasons. Indeed, this is the time for the opposition lawmakers to shine and feast on the mental shortcomings of their counterparts. The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives finds itself in the limelight as it engages in its own “hunting season” against willing victims, may they be Cabinet secretaries or, gasp, the Office of the Vice President, whose massive confidential and intelligence funds are being questioned repeatedly anew. Lo and behold, we have a statement from the House Appropriations Committee chairman that these OVP allocations will be realigned to more deserving government agencies, i.e., the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Coast Guard. However, we have yet to see the indisputable evidence to prove this happened. Nevertheless, it is a fair and conclusive presumption to say that the majority will still get its way despite the awkward and unconvincing defenses and sponsorships in favor of the government agencies. Is the budget process faulty? It appears not since the correct agencies still receive what is due them. The problem, in my humble opinion, lies in the implementation of these budgets granted to them. For instance, the alleged spending by the OVP of its confidential funds amounting to P125 million in 19 days or 11 days, whichever is true, is a problem of implementation, not allocation. What prevented the OVP from spending this amount earlier? What’s likely is that the OVP rushed the spending so they would not be accused of failure in spending public funds for the right and correct reasons. The other issue on the alleged unconstitutional transfer of funds by the Office of the President to the OVP, while the GAA of 2023 was in effect, is likewise the product of faulty, inefficient implementation of the law. It is illegal for a government office, such as the Office of the President, to casually assign a portion of its fund to the OVP because this renders the budget process faulty and even useless. If there is something that may be attributed to faulty implementation, it can be its failure to set proper safeguards that would lead to the enforcement of new ones. In fact, a Supreme Court decision on the alleged unconstitutional transfer made by the OP to the OVP is in the works. This would place the 2023 “budget-serye” on record as the landmark budget season that would define those in the coming years. For comments, email him at darren.dejesus@gmail.com. The post Budget season appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
NASA joins the still controversial search for UFOs
NASA on Thursday officially joined the search for UFOs -- but reflecting the stigma attached to the field, the US space agency wouldn't identify the director of the new program tasked with tracking mystery flying objects. The official's appointment is the result of a year-long NASA fact-finding report into what NASA calls "unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP)." "At NASA, it's in our DNA to explore -- and to ask why things are the way they are," NASA chief Bill Nelson said. An independent team of 16 researchers concluded in the report that the search for UAPs "demands a rigorous, evidence-based approach." NASA is well positioned to play a prominent role, thanks to its satellite capabilities and other technical assets. But the agency stressed in its report that any findings of possible extraterrestrial origin "must be the hypothesis of last resort -- the answer we turn to only after ruling out all other possibilities." "We want to shift the conversation about UAP from sensationalism to science," Nelson said. Even if NASA has long explored the heavens, hunting for the origin, identity, and purpose of a growing number of unexplained flying objects over planet Earth is bringing unprecedented challenges. Military and civilian pilots keep offering a multitude of reports on strange sightings. But decades of movies and sci-fi books about aliens mean the entire topic is mostly laughed off by the public as the territory of cranks. That atmosphere explained the unusual decision by NASA to decline to identify the lead UAP official's identity. "We need to ensure that the scientific process and methods are free," said Daniel Evans, who worked on the year-long NASA report leading to the announcement. "Some of the threats and the harassment have been beyond the pale quite frankly," Evans said. 800 events There have been more than 800 "events" collected over 27 years, of which two to five percent are thought to be possibly anomalous, the report's authors said during a May meeting. These are defined as "anything that is not readily understandable by the operator or the sensor," or "something that is doing something weird," said team member Nadia Drake. The US government has begun taking the issue of UAPs more seriously in recent years, in part due to concerns that they are related to foreign surveillance. One example of a still unexplained phenomenon was a flying metallic orb spotted by an MQ-9 drone at an undisclosed location in the Middle East, which was shown to Congress in April. NASA's work, which relies on unclassified material, is separate from a parallel Pentagon investigation, though the two are coordinating on matters of how to apply scientific tools and methods. In July, a former US intelligence officer made headlines when he told a congressional committee he "absolutely" believes the government is in possession of unidentified anomalous phenomena -- as well as remains of their alien operators. "My testimony is based on information I've been given by individuals with a longstanding track record of legitimacy and service to this country -- many of whom also shared compelling evidence in the form of photography, official documentation, and classified oral testimony," David Grusch told lawmakers. Earlier this week, the alleged bodies of two "non-human" beings were presented during a congressional hearing in Mexico, generating a mixture of surprise, disbelief, and ridicule on social media. The purported mummified remains, which had a grayish color and a human-like body form, were brought by Jaime Maussan, a controversial Mexican journalist and researcher who reported finding them in Peru in 2017. The post NASA joins the still controversial search for UFOs appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Court to deliver verdict on hacker behind biggest leak in football history
A Portuguese court was due on Monday to deliver its verdict on hacker Rui Pinto, whose flood of "Football Leaks" revelations exposed dirty dealings in international football. It was the biggest information leak in sports history and sparked criminal investigations in Belgium, Britain, France, Spain and Switzerland. The verdict, which has been postponed several times, was due to be delivered at a hearing in Lisbon starting at 2:30 pm (1330 GMT). Pinto, 34, is charged with 89 hacking offences, and with attempted extortion, a crime punishable in Portugal by between two and 10 years in prison. He argues he is a whistleblower, whose actions exposed underhand dealings involving top football stars, clubs and agents. Between 2015 and 2018, he shared 18.6 million documents on the internet and with a consortium of European newspapers, which published details. The revelations shook the football world. They included the salaries of Lionel Messi and Neymar, an accusation of rape against Cristiano Ronaldo, alleged financial sleight of hand at Manchester City and ethnic profiling at Paris Saint Germain. Defendant and witness Pinto is both a defendant and a protected witness in Portugal. When his trial began in September 2020, Pinto told the court he had been shocked by what he had discovered and was proud of bringing it to public knowledge. But he has admitted he used illegal means to obtain documents. His alleged victims include top Portuguese football club Sporting Lisbon, the Portuguese Football Federation, lawyers, magistrates and Doyen Sports -- a Malta-based investment fund run by Kazakh-Turkish oligarchs. Pinto was arrested in Hungary in 2019 and extradited to Portugal, where he spent a year behind bars before agreeing to cooperate with the Portuguese authorities on other cases, giving them access to encrypted documents he had obtained. The French authorities have also sought his cooperation over the "Luanda Leaks", a release of 715,000 documents providing compromising information on Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos, daughter of former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos. Dos Santos, once the richest woman in Africa, has faced several court cases on charges she syphoned billions of dollars from Angolan state companies during her father's four decades in office. The post Court to deliver verdict on hacker behind biggest leak in football history appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
NBI files another murder rap vs Bantag
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said another murder complaint has been filed against former Bureau of Corrections director general Gerald Q. Bantag for the death in 2020 of a person deprived of liberty at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City. Aside from Bantag, six other persons were named in the complaint filed by the National Bureau of Investigation for the death of PDL Hegel Laping Samson. Remulla said Samson, who succumbed to asphyxiation due to a plastic bag placed over his head, was the "Leon Bilibid" who had been narrating on social media the mysterious happenings inside the Bilibid. Also named in the murder complaint were former BuCor deputy security officer Ricardo S. Zulueta, Victor Erick L. Pascua, and Bilibid PDLs Rolando Villaver, Mark Angelo Lampera, Charlie Dacuyan and Wendell Sualog. Remulla said the four PDLs have admitted their participation in the killing of Samson, who was pronounced dead on arrival at the NBP Hospital on 7 November 2020. At the Las Pinas City Regional Trial Court , Bantag and Zulueta were earlier charged for the death of radio broadcaster Percival “Percy Lapid” M. Mabasa, while before the Muntinlupa City RTC, they were charged with the killing of PDL Cristito Villamor Palana, the alleged middleman who contacted the killer of Mabasa. Warrants of arrests against Bantag and Zulueta were issues by the trial courts, but both remain at-large. The DOJ and the NBI have offered a P2-million reward for information that would lead to Bantag’s arrest, and a reward of P1 million for Zulueta. The post NBI files another murder rap vs Bantag appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Senate inquiry into Bilibid mass grave shifts focus to escape of missing inmate
The Senate's ongoing probe into the alleged mass grave at the New Bilibid Prison is taking a new direction, centering on the escape of the missing inmate from the national penitentiary......»»
From East to West to southern trap, 50 years of hip-hop
Five decades after a Bronx block party ushered in hip-hop's 'Big Bang' moment, the culture-shifting genre is celebrating its 50th birthday Friday. The reigning music style has evolved in rapid, anarchic ways -- in many ways defying categorization -- but some patterns have emerged. What follows is a run-down of some of hip-hop's key phases. Old school What's now broadly referred to as old-school hip-hop is the genre's earliest commercially recorded music, and typically refers to songs put out from approximately 1979 to 1983. The Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" became the first commercially successful hip-hop song after it was released on September 16, 1979. It's preserved in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. "The Message" from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, released in 1982, brought a socially conscious element to the genre, delivering a raw portrait of urban life and the stresses of poverty. Other prominent artists of the moment included Afrika Bambaataa, DJ Kool Herc, Melle Mel, and Grandmaster Caz. East Coast New York and the East Coast were pivotal to the development of hip-hop throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, the "golden age." Run-DMC was among the most influential acts of the era, achieving a smattering of notable firsts for the genre. They, the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy offered harder renditions of hip-hop than their disco-tinged predecessors, with the latter rising to prominence for their political themes including racism and Black power. More complex wordplay with swift delivery and elaborate metaphors were emblematic of the age, with acts including Eric B. & Rakim, LL Cool J, Nas, Big Daddy Kane, and The Notorious B.I.G. gaining wide acclaim. De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest were meanwhile pioneering "alternative hip-hop," bringing in jazz and R&B elements. Salt-N-Pepa, Foxy Brown, Queen Latifah, and Lauryn Hill broke barriers for women, with Hill in particular popularizing melodic rapping. The Notorious B.I.G. -- or "Biggie" -- with the backing of Puff Daddy's "Bad Boy Records" became the East Coast's king following the release of his landmark debut album "Ready to Die" in 1994, up until his shock murder in 1997. And the Wu-Tang Clan also popularized East Coast styles, emphasizing hard edges and strong beats. West Coast The sounds emerging from California were fast and influenced by electronica, centering more on DJs than raps. Ice-T pioneered West Coast and gangsta rap in the late 1980s, while N.W.A. went platinum with its album "Straight Outta Compton" in 1988. Dogged by controversy and censorship over profane lyrics -- which many alleged were misogynist while also glorifying drug use and crime -- N.W.A. made waves for laying bare experiences of endemic racism and excessive policing. The group's dissolution saw members including Dr. Dre and Ice Cube gain solo acclaim. And Tupac Shakur also preferred messages of injustice as he became one of the greatest rappers of all time prior to his 1996 murder, which came just months before Biggie's. Dr. Dre's "The Chronic" charted new paths for rap as a seminal album of the era. It also introduced one of his most famous proteges, the then-budding rapper today known as Snoop Dogg, whose laid-back, windows-down lyrical delivery came to epitomize G-Funk, and whose debut album "Doggystyle" was a Dre production. Dre also shaped another household name: Eminem. "He's a creator who has moved popular culture three times... with gangsta rap, G-funk, and Eminem," said industry magnate Jimmy Iovine of Dre. Bling and Prog Biggie's commercial fame paved the way for other East Coast stars, including Jay-Z, DMX, Busta Rhymes, and 50 Cent, with the turn-of-the-millennium bling era. Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" was a major hit years before he would become one of hip-hop's billionaires and an industry mogul. His work also brought producers including Kanye West to the fore. Early in his career, West gained near-universal acclaim, not least for his integration of house, electronica and soul into creatively risky productions. And Nicki Minaj was praised for her chameleon talents and blistering flow, while Drake brought in R&B sensibilities and churned out hit after hit. Kendrick Lamar became one of contemporary music's most impactful writers, with his verses offering insight both personal and systemic, all set to jazz-heavy instrumentals. Lamar, along with West and Common, all became torchbearers of the broadly defined progressive rap, defined by a focus on social ills and change. Hip-hop was also burgeoning across the South, with artists including 2 Live Crew, Missy Elliott, and Outkast gaining traction. Trap and Drill Into the 2010s, rap's nexus shifted to Atlanta, home to the trap subgenre characterized by cymbal patterns and synthesized drums. Trap remains among American music's most popular styles, with its influence crossing into pop and EDM as well as Latin America's wildly popular reggaeton. Much of its lyricism focused on life in "the trap" -- a reference to drug-dealing spots. Artists including Outkast, T.I., Gucci Mane, and Lil Wayne expanded its popularity, while the idiosyncratic Young Thug became one of contemporary hip-hop's most emulated artists. Today's trap-influenced superstars include Migos, Cardi B, and Megan Thee Stallion. Internet virality has been key to several contemporary movements including "Soundcloud rap," whose angsty, jagged sound injected vulnerability into hip-hop. And the equally dark drill has brought the aggressive lyricism of gangsta back to prominence. It began percolating in Chicago before traveling to Britain and resurfacing in New York. Brooklyn drill gained mainstream clout thanks to work from artists including the late Pop Smoke and Fivio Foreign, as today's stars like the Bronx's Ice Spice take it viral. See more photos here: The post From East to West to southern trap, 50 years of hip-hop appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Catapang ships 1K PDLs to Iwahig, Sablayan
The Bureau of Corrections, or BuCor, has secretly transferred around 1,000 high-value prisoners, including drug lords, to the Iwahig and Sablayan prison and penal farms. BuCor director-general Gregorio Catapang Jr. said that the transfer was done in order to “decongest” the New Bilibid Prison and to “isolate” the high-value prisoners from other inmates. Catapang said that he gave the prisoners an “ultimatum” to surrender their paraphernalia and other belongings before they were transferred. He also assured that the persons deprived of liberty sent to Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm could not escape from the facility as it is situated on a mountain. “When you’re on a mountain, you don’t have a signal there and you have your own cell. If some inmates escape from there, they eventually return for fear of getting lost or being bitten by snakes or attacked by wild animals,” Catapang explained. “I transferred all the drug lords to a distant area. Now, there are issues coming out. I think the affected drug lords are the ones creating trouble for me,” he pointed out. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have launched separate investigations on the problems inside the NBP, including the alleged mass grave inside the national penitentiary’s septic tanks and the case of person deprived of liberty Michael Angelo Cataroja who has been declared missing since 15 July. The post Catapang ships 1K PDLs to Iwahig, Sablayan appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
From East to West to southern trap, 50 years of hip-hop
Five decades after a Bronx block party ushered in hip-hop's 'Big Bang' moment, the culture-shifting genre is celebrating its 50th birthday Friday. The reigning music style has evolved in rapid, anarchic ways -- in many ways defying categorization -- but some patterns have emerged. What follows is a run-down of some of hip-hop's key phases. Old school What's now broadly referred to as old-school hip-hop is the genre's earliest commercially recorded music, and typically refers to songs put out from approximately 1979 to 1983. The Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" became the first commercially successful hip-hop song after it was released on 16 September 1979. It's preserved in the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. "The Message" from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, released in 1982, brought a socially conscious element to the genre, delivering a raw portrait of urban life and the stresses of poverty. Other prominent artists of the moment included Afrika Bambaataa, DJ Kool Herc, Melle Mel, and Grandmaster Caz. East Coast New York and the East Coast were pivotal to the development of hip-hop throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, the "golden age." Run-DMC was among the most influential acts of the era, achieving a smattering of notable firsts for the genre. They, the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy offered harder renditions of hip-hop than their disco-tinged predecessors, with the latter rising to prominence for their political themes including racism and Black power. More complex wordplay with swift delivery and elaborate metaphors were emblematic of the age, with acts including Eric B. & Rakim, LL Cool J, Nas, Big Daddy Kane, and The Notorious B.I.G. gaining wide acclaim. De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest were meanwhile pioneering "alternative hip-hop," bringing in jazz and R&B elements. Salt-N-Pepa, Foxy Brown, Queen Latifah, and Lauryn Hill broke barriers for women, with Hill in particular popularizing melodic rapping. The Notorious B.I.G. -- or "Biggie" -- with the backing of Puff Daddy's "Bad Boy Records" became the East Coast's king following the release of his landmark debut album "Ready to Die" in 1994, up until his shock murder in 1997. And the Wu-Tang Clan also popularized East Coast styles, emphasizing hard edges and strong beats. West Coast The sounds emerging from California were fast and influenced by electronica, centering more on DJs than raps. Ice-T pioneered West Coast and gangsta rap in the late 1980s, while N.W.A. went platinum with its album "Straight Outta Compton" in 1988. Dogged by controversy and censorship over profane lyrics -- which many alleged were misogynist while also glorifying drug use and crime -- N.W.A. made waves for laying bare experiences of endemic racism and excessive policing. The group's dissolution saw members including Dr. Dre and Ice Cube gain solo acclaim. And Tupac Shakur also proferred messages of injustice as he became one of the greatest rappers of all time prior to his 1996 murder, which came just months before Biggie's. Dr. Dre's "The Chronic" charted new paths for rap as a seminal album of the era. It also introduced one of his most famous proteges, the then-budding rapper today known as Snoop Dogg, whose laid-back, windows-down lyrical delivery came to epitomize G-Funk, and whose debut album "Doggystyle" was a Dre production. Dre also shaped another household name: Eminem. "He's a creator who has moved popular culture three times... with gangsta rap, G-funk, and Eminem," said industry magnate Jimmy Iovine of Dre. Bling and Prog Biggie's commercial fame paved the way for other East Coast stars, including Jay-Z, DMX, Busta Rhymes, and 50 Cent, with the turn-of-the-millennium bling era. Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" was a major hit years before he would become one of hip-hop's billionaires and an industry mogul. His work also brought producers including Kanye West to the fore. Early in his career, West gained near-universal acclaim, not least for his integration of house, electronica, and soul into creatively risky productions. And Nicki Minaj was praised for her chameleon talents and blistering flow, while Drake brought in R&B sensibilities and churned out hit after hit. Kendrick Lamar became one of contemporary music's most impactful writers, with his verses offering insight both personal and systemic, all set to jazz-heavy instrumentals. Lamar, along with West and Common, all became torchbearers of the broadly defined progressive rap, defined by a focus on social ills and change. Hip-hop was also burgeoning across the South, with artists including 2 Live Crew, Missy Elliott, and Outkast gaining traction. Trap and Drill Into the 2010s, rap's nexus shifted to Atlanta, home to the trap subgenre characterized by cymbal patterns and synthesized drums. Trap remains among American music's most popular styles, with its influence crossing into pop and EDM as well as Latin America's wildly popular reggaeton. Much of its lyricism focused on life in "the trap" -- a reference to drug-dealing spots. Artists including Outkast, T.I., Gucci Mane, and Lil Wayne expanded its popularity, while the idiosyncratic Young Thug became one of contemporary hip-hop's most emulated artists. Today's trap-influenced superstars include Migos, Cardi B, and Megan Thee Stallion. Internet virality has been key to several contemporary movements including "Soundcloud rap," whose angsty, jagged sound injected vulnerability into hip-hop. And the equally dark drill has brought the aggressive lyricism of gangsta back to prominence. It began percolating in Chicago before traveling to Britain and resurfacing in New York. Brooklyn drill gained mainstream clout thanks to work from artists including the late Pop Smoke and Fivio Foreign, as today's stars like the Bronx's Ice Spice take it viral. The post From East to West to southern trap, 50 years of hip-hop appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Catapang: Inmate escape like ‘Mission Impossible’
Bureau of Corrections Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. yesterday said Michael Angelo Cataroja, a person deprived of liberty, who went missing on 15 July, might have escaped from the National Bilibid Prison by riding a garbage truck. “It's kind of like 'Mission Impossible.' They said he rode a garbage truck. He is knowledgeable with regards to vehicles as he is a carnapper,” said Catapang. According to Catapang, Cataroja's mother wants to surrender the inmate to Senator Raffy Tulfo.| The BuCor chief added that he has relieved the 20 jail guards who were on duty when Catapang disappeared. “All of them are under investigation and of course they have been relieved of their posts. They are all jail guards, about 20 of them,” said Catapang. The allowable money that a PDL can get through virtual wallets has also been slashed from P2,000 to P1,000, as one of the reform measures implemented at the NBP, he added. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have launched separate investigations into the NBP, including the alleged mass grave inside the facility's septic tanks and the case of Cataroja. Around 1,000 high-value prisoners, including drug lords, have been transferred to the Iwahig and Sablyan prison and penal farms, according to Catapang. “We transferred them... we kept it secret and did not inform the media because these are high-value targets or high-value prisoners,” he said. All in all, 500 were transferred to Iwahig and another 500 to Sablayan, including females, he added. The transfer of these prisoners will also be reported to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla. The post Catapang: Inmate escape like ‘Mission Impossible’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Change of behavior, attitude needed at BuCor
Bureau of Corrections director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. yesterday said there is an urgent need to change the behavior and attitude of corrections personnel in order to speed up the reforms that have been introduced. Catapang emphasized this as he admitted that BuCor personnel, particularly at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City, were tolerating and bringing contraband into the facility. Catapang said BuCor officials are on their toes since they are not about to surrender to the wrong attitudes and dishonesty of the erring personnel. “Persons deprived of liberty are easy to be convinced or to follow orders but BuCor personnel at the NBP seem to not be following the reforms we have introduced,” Catapang said. A case in point is a corrections officer who was found to have shifted the focus of a CCTV camera so that his movements could not be monitored. “Who will guard the guards manning the gates? I cannot guard them all and this shows that there is a big problem in attitude and behavior of our men,” Catapang said. The BuCor chief said they have to instill the right attitude in the personnel, implant the right values, integrity and discipline by providing them with their basic needs like housing, good pay and the like so they would not be tempted to steal or allow the entry of contraband. Catapang said there is a moratorium on the entry of new prisoners at the NBP following the recent shooting and stabbing of inmates and the discovery of human remains in a septic tank at the maximum security compound. The BuCor chief said this was the order of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla aimed at decongesting the national penitentiary and to “avoid the enculturation” of new inmates. Remulla said new inmates could be brought instead to the Sablayan, San Ramon, Davao, or Iwahig prison and penal farms. Catapang said congestion is really a problem because even if they release 300 PDLs a month, the NBP receives at least 500 new inmates in the same period, most of them drug-related cases. Likewise, Catapang said they are investigating personnel who may be behind efforts to derail the reforms being introduced at Bucor. The post Change of behavior, attitude needed at BuCor appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Void twice around
The illegality of the International Criminal Court, or ICC, can be found even in the most basic precepts of judicial proceedings like the principle of Ne Bis in Idem, which is commonly known as double jeopardy. It is a universally held principle that a person cannot be charged twice for the same crime, or charged again based on the same facts. The principle, thus, introduces a huge question on the legitimacy of ICC’s intrusion into the local judiciary considering that the complaints of alleged summary killings in the conduct of the war on drugs that it is investigating are already being prosecuted in domestic courts. The Pacific McGeorge School of Law asked in a paper, “The Principle of Complementarity and the International Criminal Court: The Role of Ne Bis in Idem,” about a situation in which a state has prosecuted an accused for an “ordinary” crime of murder or rape — can the ICC subsequently try the accused for genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity?” “While there is no definitive answer from the ICC as yet, the better answer to the question is ‘no,’” according to the paper. It said the ICC cannot try an accused when the accused has already been tried, whether convicted or acquitted, for the “same conduct,” whatever the legal characterization is of the crime. The paper, nonetheless, cited exceptions, such as “a sham trial, meaning that the purpose was to shield the accused from responsibility or the proceedings were otherwise lacking in independence or impartiality in a manner that was inconsistent with bringing the accused to justice.” “There could be a finding of a sham trial if the state trial was for a very minor crime, such as assault, as that could evince a purpose of shielding the accused when the underlying acts were homicide,” the paper noted. Cases involving so-called extrajudicial killings, or EJK, are being litigated in local courts which places them within the scope of the ne bis in idem principle. Another assumption that experts on international law have indicated to be at the center of the debates on the ICC’s authority to probe the war on drugs is complementarity. It provides that rather than the ICC, governments have priority in proceeding with cases within their jurisdiction. This principle means that the Court will complement, but not supersede, national jurisdiction. Local courts will continue to have priority in investigating and prosecuting crimes committed within their jurisdictions, but the ICC will act when national courts are “unable or unwilling” to perform their tasks. According to the article, a case is not admissible in the ICC if a state with primary jurisdiction is willing and able to proceed with the investigation and prosecution or if the accused was already tried and further prosecution is now barred under the ne bis in idem provision. Limitations on the authority of the ICC are also found in the Rome Statute which created it. “Articles 17 and 20 are both part of the section of the statute on ‘jurisdiction, admissibility, and applicable law.’ As such, they are limitations on the Court’s ability to consider a case.” The paper added that the admissibility provisions are designed to limit the ICC and foster state prosecutions. According to the document, “It will benefit the accused, the states, and the international community to continue to evaluate the delicate balance of the principle of complementarity with the application of the upward and downward ne bis in idem provisions in practice and to amend the statute as needed to achieve a fair administration of justice.” A review is far from what the ICC has undertaken, thus far, after it rammed through its probe on the war on drugs, claiming that the pace of rendering justice in the country had failed to satisfy it. The post Void twice around appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Raison d’être
Legal eagles are betting that the International Criminal Court will rule today to continue its investigation into the alleged extrajudicial killings being pinned on the Duterte administration at the height of its campaign against illegal drugs from 2016 to 2019. That’s to be expected because scuttling the probe would run against the raison d’être, or reason for being, of the ICC. The ICC, of course, has to justify the hundreds of millions of dollars it wastes each year on the bloated paychecks of its judges and prosecutorial staff, who are known to travel like royalty, pretending to be doing something. While the ICC claims to be a bastion of justice, the reality is that its insistence on investigating and bagging former President Rodrigo Duterte, including for his actions as Davao City mayor from 2011 to 2016, feeds its arrogant posturing while blatantly encroaching on Philippine sovereignty. This concern strikes at the heart of the ICC’s legitimacy and calls into question its adherence to the principle of national self-determination. The Philippines, like any other sovereign nation, has the right to manage its internal affairs and address alleged crimes within its own legal framework. Furthermore, the ICC has demonstrated abject bias not only against African countries but also against developing nations like the Philippines. The ICC is nothing more than a schoolyard bully, running roughshod over those it thinks are weak. In fact, many of the cases investigated by the ICC have been in Africa. This perceived bias undermines the credibility of the ICC and calls into question its ability to dispense justice fairly. It is only in recent years that the ICC has ventured to add the Philippines among its targets, precisely to counter criticism of its African bias. The ICC itself needs scrutiny, particularly its judges and the Office of the Prosecutor. What little reputation the ICC had has been thrown out the window by the controversies surrounding its own judges’ lawsuit against the ICC over pay, bringing their complaint before the International Labor Organization. These internal conflicts raise doubts about the independence and impartiality of the institution, further eroding public trust and inviting scrutiny regarding the character of its very judges. The same holds true for its current prosecutor, Karim Khan, specifically for his past role as a defense lawyer for William Ruto, the Deputy President of Kenya, who faced charges of crimes against humanity. Khan’s successful defense of Ruto and his 180-degree turn from defender to prosecutor speaks volumes about the lengths he would go to in order to add shine to his legal star. No doubt, we must consider the implications of his previous role when evaluating his current position as ICC Prosecutor. So, are the ICC judges and its prosecutorial staff worthy of trust, worthy enough to be given the mantle of authority to pass judgment on anyone? The Philippines’ arguments against the ICC investigation into the alleged drug war killings cannot be dismissed lightly. The country has maintained that it did not ratify the Rome Statute that created the ICC, thus it never fell under the purview of the tribunal, like the United States, China and Russia. If Duterte pulled the country out of the ICC in 2018, it was only because the country was a signatory to the statute, which did not amount to anything without the required ratification. The complementarity issue is another significant concern raised by the Philippines. The country has asserted that the ICC should not investigate the alleged crimes because the Philippine government is already conducting its own investigations. The ICC, on the other hand, questions the genuineness of the Philippine government’s investigations, claiming that they are merely a cover-up to protect the perpetrators from accountability. Ultimately, the ICC’s decision on whether or not to proceed with the investigation into the alleged drug war killings in the Philippines will have far-reaching implications, more so for the ICC as it tries to stave off irrelevancy. The post Raison d’être appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Suspect admits role in Abiad slay try
An arrested suspect in the ambush of photojournalist Rene Joshua Abiad two weeks ago in Quezon City has admitted to serving as a “spotter” in the assassination attempt. Philippine National Police Chief General Benjamin Acorda yesterday lauded the arrest of Jomari dela Cruz Campillo, alias “Mata,” 24, at a bus station on Thursday, 13 July. The police said Campillo revealed under questioning that he was paid P15,000 for his services, adding he was the one seen in the closed-circuit TV footage riding the pink motorcycle during the attack. Alleged gunman Eduardo Almario Legazpi II, who was tagged as a “professional shooter,” was arrested in Muntinlupa City last 7 July. Investigators are now searching for the three other suspects in the crime, including a barangay captain in Pasay City who reportedly ordered the hit on Abiad. Meanwhile, Acorda Jr. said they are looking at the possibility of lowering the cost of fees for the permit to carry firearms to encourage gun enthusiasts to regularly renew their firearm licenses and documents. Acorda said they will discuss the matter with the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Bureau of Fire Protection. The post Suspect admits role in Abiad slay try appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Judge in Leila case recuses
Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court Branch 204 Presiding Judge Abraham Joseph Alcantara has inhibited himself from overseeing the remaining illegal drug charge against former senator Leila de Lima. The decision of the judge came after he granted the prosecution’s eight-page motion, which requested his inhibition from Criminal Case 17-167. “Considering the aforementioned circumstances, I, as the Presiding Judge, will exercise caution and voluntarily refrain from presiding over the case, not because the prosecution’s assertion is true, but to eliminate any doubts regarding my credibility, integrity, and impartiality,” Alcantara said in his decision. The DoJ, in its motion, expressed concerns that Judge Alcantara’s prior acquittal of de Lima in Criminal Case No. 17-165 could potentially impact his handling of the ongoing case. Two of three drug cases filed against De Lima, about her actions as justice secretary under the administration of the late former President Noynoy Aquino, had been dismissed. The DoJ panel maintained it could “not help but be apprehensive” that Alcantara “will carry over his perceptions to the instant case.” It said that Alcantara recusing himself from the case would erase any doubt of impartiality or “any impression that he will similarly decide” as in the previous case. Section 1, Rule 137 of the Rules of Court provides that a judge “in the exercise of his sound discretion, (may) disqualify himself from sitting in a case, for just or valid reasons,” the prosecutors said. They also cited a Supreme Court ruling that a judge may be prohibited from litigating a case “when circumstances appear that will induce doubt on his honest actuation and probity in favor of either party, or incident such state of mind.” Criminal Case No. 17-167, De Lima’s third and last case, was previously assigned to RTC Judge Romeo Buenaventura of Branch 256. It was re-raffled after Buenaventura last 15 June granted the motion of De Lima’s co-accused that sought his inhibition. The case was then assigned to Judge Alcantara. The information against De Lima under Criminal Case 17-167 alleged that she and her co-accused received P70 million in narcotics money, purportedly her share for allowing drug lords detained at the New Bilibid Prison to continue running their drug empires while behind bars. The post Judge in Leila case recuses appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
8 Bilibid inmates plead guilty as accomplices, accessories to killing of middleman in Percy Lapid case
Eight New Bilibid Prison inmates have pleaded guilty to a lesser degree of involvement in the killing of Jun Villamor, the alleged middleman in the high-profile murder of broadcaster Percival Mabasa, more popularly known as Percy Lapid. .....»»
Garland denies Hunter Biden probe being interfered with
US Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday denied allegations that the Justice Department interfered with an investigation of President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. Prosecutors announced earlier this week that Hunter Biden had reached a plea deal on minor tax and gun charges with the US Attorney in his home state of Delaware. Hunter Biden is due to appear in court on 26 July after agreeing to plead guilty to two federal tax charges and admitting to illegally possessing a gun despite having a history of drug use. A whistleblower from the Internal Revenue Service alleged in testimony before the Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee released this week that the Justice Department headed by Garland had slowed the probe into Hunter Biden. Garland, in remarks to reporters on Friday, noted that the US Attorney in Delaware, David Weiss, had been appointed by former President Donald Trump, a Republican. Garland said he personally had given Weiss the authority to continue his investigation into Hunter Biden and “prosecute any way in which he wanted to.” Joe Biden’s son is also facing one count of illegal possession of a firearm. “I don’t know how it would be possible for anybody to block him from bringing a prosecution given that he has this authority,” the attorney general said. “He was given complete authority to make all decisions on his own.” Hunter Biden, 53, is the only surviving child of Joe Biden’s first marriage, which tragically ended in 1972 when his wife and baby daughter were killed in a car accident. Hunter Biden’s business dealings, especially during the time his father was vice president, have been a major target of Joe Biden’s political opponents, and continue to be probed by congressional Republicans. Hunter Biden became a regular focus of Trump’s attacks ahead of the November 2020 presidential election for his work in Ukraine and China. In his memoir, “Beautiful Things,” Hunter Biden insisted he has never done anything unethical and dismissed allegations that he displayed a lack of judgment by accepting a lucrative position on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma while his father was Barack Obama’s vice president. Under the plea agreement, Hunter Biden is unlikely to face prison time but will be sentenced to probation. According to the charges, Hunter Biden, a Yale-trained lawyer and lobbyist, failed to file his tax returns on time on earnings of more than $1.5 million for 2017 and 2018. In both years, he owed more than $100,000 in taxes on those earnings. Hunter Biden is also facing one count of “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.” Hunter Biden has admitted having drug problems in the past and detailed his struggles with crack cocaine in his 2021 memoir, released months after his father took office. Hunter Biden and his wife attended a state dinner at the White House on Thursday for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Asked about his attendance at the event, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said “it is not uncommon for family members to attend events at the White House.” The post Garland denies Hunter Biden probe being interfered with appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
No waiting for P3-M tipster’s reward — DoJ
The Department of Justice assured yesterday that the P3-million total reward it offered to anyone who could provide information leading to the arrest of fugitives Gerald Bantag and Ricardo Zulueta would be immediately given to the tipster in full. Justice Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic Clavano gave the guarantee, saying: “The reward will be given upon the successful arrest and apprehension of both Mr. Bantag and Zulueta.” Bantag and Zulueta, former top officials at the Bureau of Correction, were tagged in the killing of journalist Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa and New Bilibid Prison detainee Cristino Villamor. Villamor was killed inside the NBP hours after a self-confessed gunman in the Mabasa killing tagged him as the go-between who hired him on behalf of the alleged masterminds, Bantag and Zulueta. The post No waiting for P3-M tipster’s reward — DoJ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Muntinlupa judge inhibits from De Lima case
Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court Branch 256 Presiding Judge Romeo Buenaventura announced on Friday that he decided to inhibit from handling the remaining illegal drug charges against former Senator Leila de Lima. In a seven-page order dated 15 June 2023, the judge expressed his decision to recuse, stating that the suspicions raised by the accused, although baseless and maybe contrived, have tainted the court’s integrity and impartiality. He also emphasized the need to uphold trust and confidence in all future proceedings related to the case. “For this reason, the undersigned Presiding Judge will exercise his discretion and will recuse himself from further hearing this case not because the allegations are true, but because it is his avowed duty as member of the Bench to promote confidence in the judicial system,” Buenaventura said. Earlier, Joenel Sanchez, Ronnie Dayan, and Franklin Bucayu in their respective motion requested Judge Buenaventura’s immediate withdrawal from the case, alleging that he is the brother of Atty. Emmanuel Buenaventura, who purportedly assisted Dayan in one of his affidavits, later claiming coercion. Sanchez also revealed that Atty. Buenaventura had served as a legal adviser to the late Mindoro Congressman Reynaldo Umali during congressional hearings on the alleged drug trade at Bilibid. He asserted that Judge Buenaventura failed to disclose his relationship with Atty. Buenaventura. Buenaventura on 7 June issued a 35-page order denying de Lima’s request for bail. The court deemed her experience of being taken hostage as “injurious to health” or a threat to her life unlike in other bail cases. However, the judge clarified that evaluating the strength of the evidence does not predetermine the final outcome of the case. To recall, the Department of Justice filed the charges against De Lima alleging her involvement in the illegal drug trade during her tenure as justice secretary under the Aquino administration. Since 2017, the former lawmaker was detained at the Philippine National Police-Custodial Center in Quezon City. The post Muntinlupa judge inhibits from De Lima case appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Teves mocks DoJ over ‘bribing’ allegations
Embattled Negros Oriental Third District Representative Arnolfo Teves Jr. mocked Justice Secretary Boying Remulla’s claim that the suspects were bribed with P8 million each to recant their statements against him. In a Facebook video uploaded on Saturday, Teves labeled the alleged P8-million bribe as a figment of the Department of Justice’s imagination, stressed that he had no idea where Remulla obtained the figure. The accused lawmaker’s remark came a day after Remulla’s claim that the offer to the suspects began when his alleged co-mastermind Marvin Miranda was allowed to speak with a lawyer he earlier refuted knowing. “When Marvin Miranda was caught on 31 March, about six days after that, the rustling started. When he finally spoke to the lawyer he didn’t want to let in at first, the money offer to the other accused began,” said the Justice chief. To recall, five more suspects in the sensational 4 March killing of Degamo and nine others recanted their confessions before the Manila Regional Trial Court on 31 May, bringing the total number of suspects who initially cooperated with authorities but have now recanted their statements to 10. All 11 accused, including Miranda, filed a move to quash as they alleged that their arrests were unlawful. The most recent suspects to recant are Winrich Esturis, Eugelio Gonyon Jr., John Louie Gonyon, Joric Labrador and Benjie Rodriguez. They were represented by lawyer Jord Valenton, who said his clients were subjected to torture to confess to taking part in the assassination. Remulla over the weekend named former Justice Undersecretary Reynante Orceo as the person who allegedly spoke with Miranda and other suspects. Teves contended, though, that the Justice chief was only fabricating it against him. Previously, Teves was given another 60-day suspension and forfeited his committee memberships by the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges on Wednesday as a punishment for his continued defiance of Speaker Martin Romualdez’s call to return home and face the allegations against him in the Degamo murder case and report to work. His first suspension lapsed on 22 May. Teves left for the US since February this year. His stay outside the country despite his expired travel clearance is one of the reasons the House is running after him. The post Teves mocks DoJ over ‘bribing’ allegations appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»