Maniolas

President Benigno S. Aquino III delivers his message at the opening day of the Asia for Christ Movement Mission Congress 2012 at the Plenary Hall of the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City, Tuesday (November 13). The religious event is chaired by Bro. Eddie Villanueva. Also in attendance are leaders and members of various religious groups that include AFCM, Philippines for Jesus Movement, Intercessors for the Philippines, Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches, Alliance of Christian Missionaries, Asian Missionaries in the Philippines and Christian businessmen from different industries, among others. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – The Commission on Elections said Thursday there was post-election tampering or manipulation of votes for defeated 2013 senatorial candidate Eddie Villanueva in a precinct in Nueva Ecija. Reporting the result of the review it conducted between the physical and decrypted ballots in cluster precinct 19 in Barangay Concepcion in Gapan town, where there was alleged discrepancy in the votes for Villanueva, Comelec chief Sixto Brillantes Jr. said the physical ballots were touched after the elections and the oval for Villanueva was shaded. “In the paper ballot, there is a shade in the Villanueva oval but in the decrypted image there is no shade. Our conclusion is that this was a case of post election tampering,” Brillantes told the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on the Automated Election System. The decrypted image is a scanned picture of the ballot when the voter puts it in the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machine during election day. “At the Read More …

The current probe being conducted by the Senate on alleged corruption among elected public officials should be expanded to dispel public perception that the Aquino government is only after its perceived political enemies. So far only Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jingoy Estrada and Bong Revilla have been charged with plunder for allegedly receiving “kickbacks” from their controversial DAP and PDAF allocations. Estrada and Revilla are under detention while Enrile is still at the Philippine National Police hospital in Camp Crame due to his medical condition. Also being investigated in the Senate is Vice President Jojo Binay and some members of his family, including his wife and former Makati mayor Elenita Binay, son and current Makati Mayor Junjun and eldest daughter Senator Nancy Binay. A plunder case filed against the Binay family by their political opponents in Makati prompted senators to call for a hearing. The elder Binay and his son are being investigated for allegedly receiving “kickback” from the construction of the P2.3 billion Makati carpark building. Ernesto Mercado, former vice mayor of Makati, pointed to Binay and his son as having received “commission” from the construction of the parking building. He also claimed to have delivered part of the “kickbacks” to Mrs Binay through her daughter Nancy. He also accused senator Binay of selling her overpriced birthday cakes given by Makati City Hall to its senior citizens. He claimed the lady senator used to bake these cakes before she became a senator. The Philippines is still perceived as one Read More …

PARIS, France) President Benigno S. Aquino III shares a light moment with French President Francois Hollande during the Joint Press Statement at the ground floor of the Palais de l’Elysee on Wednesday (September 17). (MNS photo) PARIS, France, Sept 18 (Mabuhay) – The Philippines and France further strengthened its bilateral relations with the signing of several agreements on transportation and communications, culture and education. In a statement delivered after his meeting with French President François Hollande, President Benigno S. Aquino III said these agreements “will facilitate meaningful dialogue and fruitful exchanges between our two countries.” One of these is the agreement on air services, which was signed by Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya and French Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Development Laurent Fabius. President Aquino and President Hollande witnessed the signing during a simple ceremony held at the Elyseé Palace. According to President Aquino, the air services agreement would “open more doors of opportunity for both our peoples, as we strengthen tourism, trade, business activity and our people-to-people ties.” The two leaders also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the École Nationale d’Administration and the Development Academy of the Philippines, and the 2014-2017 Administrative Agreement on Cultural Cooperation. “The agreement between the École Nationale d’Administration and the Development Academy of the Philippines looks into the establishment of training and exchanges that will benefit our many civil servants in the Philippines, as they work to provide improved services,” Pre

(photo image courtesy of http://www.joinknightsofcolumbus.org/) The Knights of Columbus (KofC) Council 1920, which is comprised of these 5 parishes, St. Dominic’s Church (Eagle Rock), Cristo Rey Church (Los Angeles) Incarnation Church (Glendale), Holy Family Church (Glendale), and Holy Trinity Church (Atwater) parish, is celebrating its 96th anniversary on Sept. 29, 2014. The “Modern day Knights” serves! He serves the papal tenets, the church, and fulfills the needs of his fellow parishioners and communities. The KofC is a Fraternal Order of Catholic men dedicated in Charity, Fraternity, Unity and Patriotism! However, in observance of tradition, the requirement for joining the KofC still remains fervently the same. To join, one must be 18 years of age and must be a “practical” catholic man. To be a “Practical Catholic”, one needs to be in communion with the Holy See! KofC Council 1920 meets at the KofC Hall located at 2515 Canada Blvd, Glendale CA 91208 every first Thursday of the month and is very active in church, catholic schools, and in their respective parishes. The KofC Council 1920, in this very festive occasion… and for its 96th anniversary celebration, is inviting you to become a member, and be involved! Also, on September 20th 2014, Saturday from 12-2PM, we will be having a “Free Kick” soccer competition at the St. Dominic Church’s parking lot at Eagle Rock Los Angeles. This event is open to all boys and girls ages 9-14. For further details about this event please contact Pablo at (323) 257-8896 or (323) 580-1926 (cell). To learn more about us, please visit our website at Www.JoinKnightsOfColumbus.org. For Banquet Hall Rental, please call “John” at (818) 545-0175. To join the Read More …

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago announces during a press conference on Wednesday (July 2, 2014) that she has been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. “God never asks us for an opinion. God just goes ahead and does whatever is in His hands. I just say okay,” Santiago says. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago admitted Thursday that she received funds for her projects but clarified that she was not informed that it was sourced from the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP). In a press statement, Santiago said she was even surprised upon seeing her name on the list of legislators who received DAP allocations. “In my case, a few months ago, I even requested from the DBM (Department of Budget and Management) a list of any DAP releases to me. It took them some time to give me the list. And when I received it, even I was surprised, because when my Office reportedly received the funds, they were not identified as DAP funds,” she said. Santiago maintained that she did not ask for any DAP releases made to her. “They must have been received in due course by my Office, from the Senate secretariat. If so, I would have assigned the funds to my usual PDAF projects – such as the UP system throughout the country, PGH, other hospitals, or local government units – but certainly not to NGOs,” she said. She added that the usual practice was for the Senate secretariat to inform a senator that Read More …