MANILA, Dec 12 (Mabuhay) — Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa on Tuesday revealed that President Rodrigo Duterte has already promised to appoint him in government when he retires in January. “Sinabihan ako (ni Presidente) kung ano ang pupuntahan ko pero napakahi…
MANILA – Malacañang on Wednesday welcomed Congress’ approval of the extension of Martial Law and the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao and asked the public to support the decision. “We welcome the approval of both houses of Congress to extend the proclamation of martial…
MANILA – The Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) is investing PHP20 million for all stations of the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) to shift to light emitting diode (LED) systems as part of efforts to improve passenger safety. The LRT-1 operator has installed LED systems at six stations, namely, …
MANILA – The House of Representatives on Wednesday night ratified the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN), the first package of the comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) envisioned by President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration. Th…
MANILA – Senator Joseph Victor Ejercito said Friday he believes former president Benigno Aquino III acted “in good faith” when he allowed the purchase of PHP3.5-billion worth of Dengvaxia dengue vaccine during his term. “I’m not a fan of (former) President Aquino. We have different (political) color…
MANILA, Nov 22 (Mabuhay) –Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Wednesday filed a libel complaint against pro-Duterte blogger Rey Joseph “RJ” Nieto, who runs the blog ThinkingPinoy, over his Facebook post which, citing apparently disputable sources, “insinuated” that the senator was a “narco,” or a drug lord. Trillanes, who is himself facing sedition and coup d’etat raps over allegations he encouraged the military to kill President Rodrigo Duterte, formally filed his complaint with the Pasay City Prosecutor’s Office at around 11 a.m. on November 22, two weeks after he first announced he would. Trillanes told reporters he hoped his complaint against Nieto would serve as a “lesson” for the blogger. The complaint accused Nieto of libel under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 and of violations of the libel provisions of the Revised Penal Code, as the Facebook post in question allegedly met all the qualifications for the criminal act. According to the law, an act can be considered libelous if it imputes crime, vice or defect, whether real or imaginary; be public, malicious, directed at a person, alive or dead, and must tend to cause the dishonor, discredit or contempt of the person defamed. Trillanes seeks P1 million each for moral and exemplary damages and P250,000 to cover attorney fees. “Being a very vocal and staunch critic of President Duterte, of whom Respondent Nieto is a self-confessed diehard supporter and defender, Respondent Nieto’s post was clearly made solely for the purpose of besmirching my reputation and maligning my name,” read Read More …
MANILA, Nov 22 (Mabuhay) — A party-list lawmaker on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to scrap the Land Transportation Office’s P836-million project involving the procurement of driver’s license cards this year. ACTS OFW party-list Rep. Aniceto Bertiz III argued that the General Appropriations Act of 2016 did not allocate a single centavo for the procurement of driver’s license cards with five-year validity. Bertiz cited Article 6, Section 29 (1) of the 1987 Constitution which provides that “no money shall be paid out of the Treasury “except in pursuance of an appropriation made by law.” “If Congress had deliberately and purposely intended to appropriate public funds to be used as an expenditure for the LTO-Driver’s License Cards, it would have specifically and particularly approved an item of appropriation for the ‘production of driver’s licenses’ as it purposely and deliberately did in the GAA 2013,” the petition stated. “In the absence of a specific and particular item of appropriation for the ‘production of driver’s licenses’ in the GAA 2016, Congress evidently and without nary a doubt deliberately determined and intended not to appropriate any public money for the procurement of driver’s license cards. Thus, GAA 2016 did not allocate a single centavo for procurement of LTO-Driver’s License Cards,” it added. Bertiz then urged the SC to stop the implementation of the project, “which includes the sale and conveyance of driver’s license cards and the collection of money” from motor vehicle and motorcycle drivers/owners and “disbursing and using public funds for the payment Read More …
Filipino actor Mon Confiado poses with Stateside co-star American actress Olivia Hultgren during a cocktail party at the Mia Jee Tandoori restaurant at 205 S Vermont Avenue, Los Angeles shortly after the movie’s screening. Photo: Abner Galino Challenging is an understatement when used to describe producing a film here in Los Angeles where, as we all know, the legendary Hollywood is situated. So, more than a year after the makers, the crew and the cast of the movie “Stateside” held a press conference to announce the then impending screening of their movie, it was only last November 18 when it finally got a screening at the Raleigh Studios on Melrose St. in Hollywood. Director Marcial Chavez said that during the long lull, many of their shots were ruined, prompting them to make adjustments with their storyline. Filipino actor Mon Confiado confided that he also partly caused the delay as he had to finish his other commitments before he was able to come back to the US to shoot the remaining scenes. “But I am happy now that we were able to do the screening. It is really an honor and achievement to be part of this movie,” Confiado said. Chavez said that in reconstructing the film, he opted to bring more drama rather than action into it. “Mon is a good actor and he was able to deliver what we wanted,” Chavez said. Stateside is a movie that attempts to tell a story of an undocumented immigrant without the politics Read More …
Guests to the launching of the 2017-2018 Leelin’s VIP Rewards Loyalty Sweepstakes raise the thumbs up sign as they are led by “Momsy” Leelin (seated 7th from left). With her is her son and Leelin Bakery and Café founder Menard (seated 6th from left) and her grandson Michael (seated 5th from left). On her right is Philippine Air Lines (PAL) LAX area manager Michelle Narvaez. Also present are Cerritos Councilor Frank Yokoyama (seated 4th from left), host Thelma Sugay (standing 1st from left), singer Jaime Bacani (standing 3rd from left) and former wrestler Brittany Fetkin (standing 5th from left). A customer loyalty rewards contest that offers free round-trip tickets to the Philippines and as well as a culinary tour has been recently re-launched by Leelin Bakery and Café, in cooperation with the Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) in Los Angeles and the Philippine Air Lines (PAL), during a modest ceremony in Cerritos last November 15. Last year, a Filipino American who works at the Superior Court won the grand prize. Unfortunately, the winner was not around to tell his story. But Cerritos City Councilor Frank Aurelio Yokoyama, who won year long free meals in the 2016-2017 Leelin VIP Rewards Sweepstakes, was around to attest to the joy of such a reward. I was so lucky to win Leelin Bakery and Café for a year, I was so sad when the year ended,” Yokoyama jested at the end of his short speech. PDOT director Richmond Jimenez and Philippine Airlines (PAL) LAX Read More …
MANILA, Nov 23 (Mabuhay) — Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. declined to comment on the irrevocable resignation tendered by Transportation Undersecretary for Rails Cesar Chavez Thursday morning, saying he has yet to receive official word on the matter. “Hindi ko pa naririnig yun. Antayin muna natin yan, dahil ngayon, balita pa lang na galing sa media… Dapat kasama siya dito pero ang daumating dito ay isang direktor,” Roque told reporters covering his scheduled ride from Quezon City to Manila via the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) systems. Chavez was supposed to join Roque during his trip, which had been announced to the media Wednesday. An hour before the schedule, however, Chavez held a press conference announcing his resignation from the Department of Transportation (DOTr) amid problems hounding the MRT system. In his resignation letter to President Rodrigo Duterte dated November 23, Chavez said that he was quitting his post to give an “opportunity for the appointment of person better qualified to perform the duties and responsibilities of the subject office.” “I hope the President understands that in the light of recent events involving the MRT3 System, simple sense of delicadeza which I have adhered to throughout my professional life gives me no choice but to resign from m y said position,” he said. (MNS)