Maniolas

Activists react after it was announced that the execution was delayed for death row prisoner Mary Jane Veloso, during a vigil outside Indonesian embassy in Makati, Philippines April 29, 2015. The execution of a Filipina drug convict by an Indonesian firing squad was delayed at the last minute after one of her recruiters surrendered to police in the Philippines, the attorney general’s spokesman said on Wednesday.(MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) — Filipina migrant worker Mary Jane Veloso has been taken away from the execution island in Indonesia after being granted reprieve by the Indonesian government, The Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday. The 30-year-old Veloso was spared from execution by a firing squad early Wednesday, after President Benigno Aquino III made a last-minute appeal to the Indonesian government to turn the Filipina convicted on drug charges into a witness. Indonesian and Philippine officials struggled to deal with the emotion-laden situation up to the final hours, prompting Aquino to take up the matter to Widodo at sidelines of a Southeast Asian summit where they took up much bigger regional concerns like the South China Sea territorial disputes. “The President has undertaken all avenues including diplomatic and legal means to do what he can for Mary Jane as it is the President’s belief that every human life is invaluable,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario told journalists at a hastily called press conference before noon Wednesday. “The last minute in stay had been granted and as we conveyed this morning, we are all Read More …

Senator Chiz Escudero, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, delivers a privilege speech on the 2014 General Appropriations Bill, Tuesday morning. According to Escudero, the 2014 budget proposal, which includes funds for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction programs and projects in the amount of P70 billion, will also include specific funding for the rehabilitation of the Visayas on top of the existing calamity fund to be sourced from items which can be postponed in the 2014 national budget. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) — Senator Francis Escudero on Wednesday said the Philippines should lead the campaign for the abolition of death penalty as a punishment even as the government exhausts all means to commute the sentence on Mary Jane Veloso. “Una, ituloy ang pagsulong ng legal na proseso hanggang ma-commute o pardon si Mary Jane. Pangalawa, pangunahan at isulong ng ating bansa sa international community ang pag-alis na ng death penalty bilang kaparusahan sa anumang krimen,” he said. He also said Veloso’s plight should serve as a lesson to other Filipinos seeking jobs abroad to be vigilant. Go after alleged recruiter Other senators, on the other hand, urged the government to go after the alleged recruiter of Veloso, who was sentenced to death due to drug smuggling in Indonesia, to make permanent the reprieve granted to her. Senator Juan Edgardo Angara said the government should fast-track and prioritize the cases against the illegal recruiter and see if the claim of Veloso that she was just set up is true. Read More …

Shaina Magdayao (MNS Photo) Actress Shaina Magdayao is exploring the world outside show business by opening a franchise of Engineering for Kids, an educational program that originated in the United States. The course aims to introduce kids ages four to 14 to science, technology, engineering and math through a variety of workshops that would enhance their problem solving skills. Shaina, along with several business partners, launched the endeavor on April 7. “Ito ang bago kong pinagkakaabalahan. You know Shaina the actress but this is really something interesting (since) alam niyo naman gaano ako kalapit sa mga bata and at the same time, gaya nga ng sinasabi ko, showbiz is not forever dapat we should make wise investment,” she told ABS-CBN News in an interview. The actress feels blessed to find career-driven business partners, admitting they encouraged her to make the investment. “Grabe ’yung mga business partners ko eh, mga mommies, ako lang ang walang anak. Pero they are super women talaga for me. Na-inspire nila ako to enter this (business). Tinutulungan nila ako, napakalaki na ng mundo (ko) outside of showbiz,” Shaina said. The Kapamilya talent said one of her partners even went to the US to study the program’s curriculum, saying, “Ang laki ng potential nitong program especially ’yung generation now, pwede itong learning at the same time enjoying for kids.” She says she is most proud of the Robotics and Electronics Game Design subjects in the program. “’Yung robotics amazing talaga kasi ’yung robots na ifo-form nu’ng kids Read More …

By Joel GUINTO Manny Pacquiao shadow boxes during media day in Los Angeles days prior to leaving for Las Vegas. Photo Credit: Chris Farina / Top Rank Manila, Philippines (AFP) Tuesday 4/28/2015 – Filipino boxing hero Manny Pacquiao is confident he can beat American arch-rival Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas on Saturday with the power of God, after abandoning a life he said was packed with sin condemning him to hell. Pacquiao is in top form both in mind and spirit after he traded his boozing, gambling and womanising ways for a devout life of prayer, his spiritual adviser, Jeric Soriano, told AFP in a recent Manila interview. “Manny is a God-fearing man. Inside his heart of hearts he really loved God. Except the world got to him,” Soriano said of Pacquiao’s party-boy lifestyle before he became born-again in 2012. Pacquiao now dreams of becoming a pastor and is building a 6,000-square metre (1.5-acre) “worship house” in his southern Philippine hometown of General Santos as a monument to his spiritual rebirth, Soriano said. With Soriano’s help, Pacquiao a few years ago converted to the born-again faith, which shuns many Catholic traditions such as religious images but emphasises strict adherence to the bible. He is now building a church, to be called: “The Word for Everyone” and which can accommodate up 5,000 people, in his southern hometown of General Santos, pastor Boy Buan, who is overseeing the construction, told AFP. ‘I was a sinner’ In 2012, Pacquiao acknowledged he had succumbed Read More …

KC Concepcion (MNS Photo) Actress-host KC Concepcion has proudly declared that she is happier after her much publicized break-up with Paulo Avelino. Part of Concepcion’s new life is her all-out support for sexually abused children, an issue which she passionately discussed at the launch of “Lukso! Cirque La Vie,” a circus therapy campaign for girl survivors of child abuse. The campaign will culminate in a big circus show featuring French luminaries at Resorts World Manila in May. Concepcion that this is her way of keeping her foot on the ground amid all the showbiz hoopla and her privileged life. The Kapamilya star was joined by her long-time friend and French Legion of Honor awardee Laurence Ligier, known for her advocacy for marginalized and abused children in the Philippines and other countries. “Right now I’m focusing on my fitness. I’m focusing on my endorsements. I’m still with ABS-CBN, of course, but for now, gusto ko muna maging best beautiful version of myself,” she said. Paulo Avelino (MNS photo) Asked if she is now dating anybody, the actress suddenly changed the topic and said: “I have three new endorsements coming out. I’m very excited.” Concepcion, however, was not able to dodge the question on whether she has closed her doors on love for now. “I would rather keep things personal because ang dami ko nang pinagdaanan in public. Now is the time to keep my love life private,” she said. It was only last month when Avelino admitted that he and Concepcion Read More …