We are sorry, the requested page does not exist
India backs Philippines in dispute with China
New Delhi has drawn a strong response from Beijing after reiterating its support for Manila in a territorial dispute India has "firmly reiterated" its support for the Philippines and its "national sovereignty," as Manila remains locked in a territorial dispute with Beijing in the South China Sea. Ten.....»»
India backs Philippines in sea dispute with China
New Delhi has drawn a strong response from Beijing after reiterating its support for Manila in a territorial dispute India has "firmly reiterated" its support for the Philippines and its "national sovereignty," as Manila remains locked in a territorial dispute with Beijing in the South China Sea. Ten.....»»
'We firmly support Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty': EAM Jaishankar in Manila
Manila [Philippines], March 26 (ANI): External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, who is on a formal visit to Manila, said on Tuesday that India firmly supports the Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty and will continue to further enhance cooperation in various fields, including defence and security. "We firmly support the Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty. So I think our position is very clear......»»
Solon bats for expansion of motorcycle taxis outside Metro Manila
A House lawmaker has voiced his support for expanding the government's allotment of motorcycle taxis outside Metro Manila as the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board is set to greenlight the participation of more players in its pilot study......»»
Pagasa debunks ‘three days of darkness’ hoax
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) dismissed claims that the Earth will experience three days of darkness due to passing the “Photon Belts” starting April 8 as false. The state weather and astronomy bureau said Friday there is no scientific evidence to support the claim. “DOST-PAGASA would like to.....»»
No sanctions for teacher scolding pupils — VP Sara
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President and Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) Sara Duterte announced on Thursday that the teacher who was seen in a viral video scolding her class will not face any penalties. According to Duterte, she just wants to remind the teacher that when she is angry, she has to pause.....»»
ADB approves USD 100 mln loan to support small and medium-sized enterprises in Sri Lanka
Manila [Philippines], March 19 (ANI): The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 100 million loan to provide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Sri Lanka more access to finance and build their resilience to external shocks, such as the economic crisis and climate change. SMEs play a critical role in Sri Lanka's economy, contributing 52 per cent to the country's gross domestic product and employ 45 per c.....»»
Graft buster clears Cusi
Citing the presumption of regularity, the Office of the Ombudsman threw out the graft complaint of a New York-based billionaire against former Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, other Department of Energy officials, Davao City-based executive Dennis Uy, and several others over the sale of 90 percent of the shares of the Malampaya natural gas consortium. On 18 October 2021, US-based geologist Balgamel Domingo and Filipino-American anti-Duterte leaders Rodel Rodis and Loida Nicolas-Lewis filed charges against Cusi, Uy, and the others involved in the sale of the Malampaya stake to the Udenna group of Uy. In a copy of the ruling obtained by the Daily Tribune, the Ombudsman said it could not delve into the complaint on the legality of the transaction since “the authority to make such a determination belongs to the court.” “Seemingly, this complaint is in actuality a collateral attack on the validity of the Share Sale and Purchase Agreement,” it said. The decision declared that “matters of such tenor are not determinable in a preliminary investigation before the Ombudsman’s Office.” “Without any judicial determination decreeing the illegality of the Share Sale and Purchase Agreement, this Office is left with nothing but to acknowledge its validity,” the ruling said. The Ombudsman cited a precedent in the case of Teresita Buenaventura vs Metrobank, in a ruling that stated: “The burden of showing that a contract is simulated rests on the party impugning the contract.” “This is because of the presumed validity of the contract that has been duly executed,” the Ombudsman ruling read. “Wherefore, the criminal charges for violation of Section 3(e) and of Republic Act 3019 against the respondents are dismissed for lack of probable cause.” The ruling was signed by members of a Special Panel of Investigators composed of Ronald Allan Ramos, Josephine Mae Rosapapan, Francisco Alan Molina and Bonifacio Mandrilla. Prime takes control The operation of the Malampaya project was recently assumed by the Razon group’s Prime Energy which bought a 45-percent stake from Malampaya Energy XP, or MEXP, of the Udenna group. MEXP had bought the shares of Shell Philippines Exploration B.V., or SPEX, in the consortium. The Department of Energy had branded the complaint a political move since the two Fil-Am lawyers in the suit were prominent in the “Oust Duterte” movement in the United States. The complaint alleged that Cusi and other energy officials had granted “unwarranted benefits and advantage” to Uy’s UC Malampaya in the buyout of Chevron’s share in the consortium. Udenna, through spokesperson Raymond Zorilla, said there is “no law requiring approval of the transfer of shares of companies that have an interest in Malampaya.” Zorilla said the transfer of Chevron and Shell shares underwent strict bidding processes and due diligence by both multinational oil and gas players. “The share sales were above board and legal and had to pass scrutiny by Philippine regulators, international lenders, and the said private multinationals involved,” Zorilla added. Cusi, in an interview with Daily Tribune, had said the DoE was not involved in choosing the buyer of the shares of Shell and Chevron in the Malampaya project. “The DoE did not get involved in the sale (of shares). We don’t know that they are selling. Our question was what their standards are for choosing Udenna. Why didn’t you choose the big companies, and why Udenna?” he said. Industry experts said the sale of shares was a private transaction that the accusers, who are US lawyers, should have been very familiar with. Cusi said the DoE, during his watch, went beyond its mandate by reviewing the technical, legal, and financial aspects of the transactions, the results of which were provided to the public. Political agenda The complaint, he said, had an underlying political agenda connected to his being the head of President Rodrigo Duterte’s Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan or PDP Laban. “It is not only political propaganda against me, but it also has a destabilization background… because I’m the president of the PDP.” The complaints, in turn, stemmed from the unending Senate inquiries on the Malampaya deals. The DoE said the Senate probes and the controversies that resulted from them had caused costly delays in the review process that would ultimately affect the country’s energy security. To refute a recent remark by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, the DoE, in a statement said: “The inquiries of Senator Gatchalian are causing undue delay to the timeline of the consortium corporations, and this may eventually take its toll and put our energy security at risk.” The DoE’s approval of the sale of shares of stock of Chevron Malampaya LLC, one of the three corporations in the Malampaya Gas Field Project Consortium, had been dubbed by Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, as “lutong Macau.” It also backed the Udenna assessment that the deals were above-board. “When the sales were made, both Chevron Philippines, which owned Chevron Malampaya, and Shell Petroleum NV, owner of SPEX, followed rigorous global standards,” the DoE said. Nicolas-Lewis was part of a 25-person delegation from the US-Philippines Society, a private group comprising business executives and diplomats, who met with Duterte a week before his inauguration as president in 2016. Nicolas-Lewis was then accompanied by former Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, PLDT chair Manuel V. Pangilinan, retired American diplomats, and executives of Coca-Cola, SGV, JP Morgan, and other top corporations. Nicolas-Lewis is the sister of former National Anti-Poverty Commission chairperson Imelda Nicolas, who was one of the “Hyatt 10” Cabinet members who turned against then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2005. Imelda and most of the Hyatt 10 members ended up getting key posts in the administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. Imelda was made head of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas. Nicolas-Lewis plot bared In February 2018, former President Duterte bared intercepted conversations that indicated Nicolas-Lewis was behind efforts to push the International Criminal Court, or ICC, to probe his war on drugs. Duterte revealed a recorded conversation between Lewis and another political opponent whom he did not name. “I was listening to the tapes of their conversation. It was provided to me by another country, but the conversation was somewhere in the Philippines and New York,” Duterte said. He said that among the recordings was one in which Lewis allegedly told another person: “See you in the headquarters when the case is filed.” Duterte then said in a public address that he was aware of developments on the ICC case and that lawyer Jude Sabio, the main complainant in the case, was a paid hack of Magdalo Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and Rep. Gary Alejano, both failed putschists. Sabio withdrew his complaint before the ICC and revealed that the case was the handiwork of the dirty tricks factory of Trillanes. In 2016, Duterte pointed to Lewis as the financier of an alleged destabilization plot against his administration. Nicolas-Lewis invested heavily in the failed presidential campaigns of Liberal Party bets Mar Roxas in 2016 and Vice President Leni Robredo in 2022. The post Graft buster clears Cusi appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Credibility challenge
International Criminal Court probers will continue to be barred from the Philippines because the government has a responsibility to the nation not to let them in. Assistant Solicitor General Justice Angelita Miranda said the core issue in the government’s defiance of the ICC’s effort to investigate the drug war is about defending sovereignty. “While we adhere to international laws, the Philippines has a functioning judiciary and the ICC should respect that,” Miranda said on the weekly Daily Tribune program, Straight Talk. International lawyers have said that the principle of complementarity compels the ICC not to interfere in the judicial processes of the country. Through the maneuverings of the opponents of former President Rodrigo Duterte, led by destabilizer Antonio Trillanes IV, the ICC was provided with an alibi to probe the anti-narcotics campaign. Trillanes’ henchman, Gary Alejano, filed a haphazard impeachment complaint against Duterte in 2017, shortly after the destabilizer’s pawn, lawyer Jude Sabio, filed the crimes against humanity complaint with the ICC against the then president. Alejano knew that the impeachment case would not prosper but that was part of the grand scheme of Trillanes to activate an ICC investigation. The president could only be removed through impeachment and proving that the process would not prosper gave the excuse that legal remedies to run after Duterte had been exhausted, opening an opportunity for ICC to enter the picture. Miranda said she supports Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla when he says he will personally meet the ICC prosecutor when he lands in the country and escort him back to where he came from. Sabio’s petition to the ICC was the product of figures concocted by the political foes of Duterte such as on the existence of the Davao Death Squad during his term as Davao City mayor and the alleged 20,000 deaths linked to the anti-narcotics campaign. Proof of the partisan nature of the complaint lodged with the ICC was very evident, yet the tribunal took it upon itself to still pursue the preliminary examination despite Sabio’s withdrawal of the charges after admitting it was a Trillanes operation. Sabio came out in the open after a dispute over his retainer with Trillanes. In 2019, after ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda started her preliminary examination of the crimes against humanity complaint, the Philippines completed its withdrawal from the 1998 Rome Statute which created the international court. Despite the country’s pullout, the prosecutor pointed out that the ICC retained jurisdiction over crimes committed in the Philippines between 2011 and 2019 when it was still a member of the ICC. The inconsolable enemies of Duterte then challenged the disengagement before the Supreme Court which issued a decision siding with the then president as the chief architect of foreign policy. The filing of the ICC case in April 2017 was primarily intended to deflect a determined campaign against drug syndicates but it resulted in the probe of the drug network in the New Bilibid Prison that led to the detention of Senator Leila de Lima, who was justice secretary when the shabu factory in the maximum security prison flourished. The evidence against Duterte and various personalities that the ICC associated with the drug war relied mainly on the testimonies of Arturo Lascañas and Edgar Matobato, who were characters in Trillanes’ stable. Various probes, including Senate inquiries, proved that the revelations of both were a canard as they were drawn from the myth surrounding Duterte. Initially dug up were the supposed vigilante killings when the president was Davao City mayor. The yarn was proven to be without proof in investigations conducted by the Senate. The partisan aim of the Sabio complaint was evident after it hauled practically the entire officialdom of the Duterte administration in the insane petition. Along with the president in the complaint were then Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre, Philippine National Police chief Ronald de la Rosa, House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, former Interior Secretary Ismael Sueño, National Bureau of Investigation Director Dante Gierran, and Solicitor General Jose Calida. Even Senator Richard Gordon was included for coming out with a Senate report that threw out the testimony of Trillanes factotum Matobato. The investigations debunked allegations that the extrajudicial killings were state-sponsored. The Palace labeled the allegations as mere vicious noises in the futile campaign to oust Duterte which was its real intention. The plot of the hypocrites now is to brand the Marcos administration as shielding Duterte from prosecution which will not find favor among Filipinos who entrust their overwhelming confidence to both leaders. In contrast, the ICC is trying to shore up its credibility by going after the Philippines. The post Credibility challenge appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
MILF cites non-Moro governor’s support to peace process
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front on Wednesday awarded a non-Muslim governor of a province outside of the Bangsamoro region a special citation for supporting the peace overture between the MILF and Malacañang since its inception in 1997......»»
Manila Archbishop: Washing of feet maintains faithful’s connection to Jesus
In his homily at the Manila Cathedral on the evening of Maundy Thursday, Advincula stressed the importance of the washing of the feet, not merely as a hygienic act but as a sign of one's relationship with Jesus......»»
Philippines announces decisive measures amid tensions with China
Manila [Philippines], March 28 (ANI): Amid the escalating tensions in the South China Sea, Philippine President Ferdinand R Marcos Jr has announced decisive measures to protect his country's sovereignty and maritime rights while ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. Marcos, known as Bongbong, said that the measures, aimed at addressing what he said is the "open, unabating, and illegal" actions by China's Coast.....»»
Contagious pertussis disease continues spreading in Philippines
MANILA, March 28 (Xinhua) -- The contagious pertussis has continued spreading in the Philippines, where it has caused at least 40 death cases, after a province near the capital region reported an outbreak of the disease. In a social media post on Wednesday night, the Cavite government posted a resolution declaring the province under a state of calamity "due to the outbreak of pertussis" after logging 36 cases an.....»»
PH media slam Chinese foreign ministry’s claims of manipulating WPS reports
Philippine media groups criticized the Chinese foreign ministry for suggesting that recent reports on Chinese harassment of Filipino vessels in the West Philippine Sea involved video manipulation and sensationalism to portray the Philippines as a victim. The Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (Focap) and National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) expressed offense.....»»
Akbayan to Sara: You don’t have to be president to speak vs China
MANILA, Philippines — Party-list group Akbayan said on Thursday that Vice President Sara Duterte does not have to be a president of the country for her to call out China’s intrusive actions over the West Philippine Sea (WPS). Empathy and a moral backbone is just what it takes to stand up with fisherfolk and frontline.....»»
China: PH is ‘straying down a dangerous path’
MANILA, Philippines — China continued to blame the Philippines and its ally, the United States, for the continued tensions in the disputed West Philippine Sea. In a statement on Thursday, Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Wu Qian warned that the Philippines is going down a dangerous path. READ: No letup in Chinese water cannon attacks.....»»
Leren proud kay Ricci: From your Nanay, Tita and Ate all in one
SUPER proud ang beauty queen-politician na si Leren Mae Bautista sa panibagong achievement na nakamit ng kanyang dyowang si Ricci Rivero. Nitong Martes, March 26, ibinandera ng Laguna councilor ang kanilang larawan pati na rin ang video ni Ricci habang naglalaro ito sa kanyang kauna-unahang PBA All-Star Game bilang rookie. Sa kabila ng sobrang pagka-proud.....»»
Andrea Brillantes niregaluhan ng Rolex nina Whamos at Antonette
NAWINDANG ang Kapamilya actress na si Andrea Brillantes matapos itong makatanggap ng mamahaling relo na Rolex mula sa social media personalities na sina Whamos Cruz at Antonette Gail del Rosario. Sa isang video na ibinahagi ni Whamos sa kanyang Facebook page ay sinurpresa nila ang dalaga na nag-celebrate ng birthday kamakailan. “Mayroon na naman tayong.....»»
7 lumang simbahan sa Metro Manila na swak pang-‘Visita Iglesia’
TUWING sasapit ang Semana Santa, isa sa mga tradisyon ay ang “Visita Iglesia.” Para sa mga hindi aware, isa ito sa mga taunang ginagawa ng mga Katoliko na bumisita sa pito o higit pang simbahan upang magdasal at magmuni-muni sa mga istasyon ng Krus. Sa pamamagitan nito, ibinabandera ng mga deboto ang kahalagahan ng pananampalataya,.....»»
Belmonte, Binay call for climate action funding from development banks
The C40 coalition of cities, a network of nearly 100 mayors, asked MDBs to increase urban climate investment, integrate urban climate action into their strategies, and implement tailored programs to support city projects. .....»»