Maniolas

Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, poses questions to Janet Lim-Napoles, alleged pork barrel scam mastermind during the hearing on Thursday (Nov. 7, 2013) at the Senate building in Pasay City. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Following a congressman’s proposal to create a truth commission composed of retired Supreme Court (SC) justices to help facilitate the probe into the P10-billion pork barrel scam, Malacanang on Saturday said it has first to undergo review. Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. in an interview on dzRB Radyo ng Bayan, said the proposal has to undergo a review, reacting to the proposal made by Buhay Partylist Rep. Joselito Atienza Jr. Atienza reportedly said that by creating the so-called truth commission, the slow pace of investigation could be hastened. “We respect the opinions of our lawmakers,” Coloma said. “However, this idea must be reviewed.” The PCOO chief assured citizens that the Aquino administration is doing everything it could to speed up the process of investigation on the pork barrel scam. He further said that the Department of Justice, Commission on Audit and the Office of the Ombudsman have enough mechanisms to facilitate the case on its own. “We have enough mechanisms and structure in the Justice system to specify who will conduct investigation on this matter,” Coloma added. (MNS)

CAPITOL HILL MEETING. Vice President Jejomar C. Binay, accompanied by Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. and Rep. Abigail Binay-Campos, discuss bilateral issues with Rep. Ed Royce, Chair of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the United States House of Representatives, during a meeting in Washington, D.C. on Thursday. (Philippine Embassy Photo by Ariel Penaranda) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Vice President Jejomar Binay gave his full support to the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), saying it will also help the country achieve its goal of improving the lives of Filipino people. “Through the EDCA, we have effectively upgraded our own security platform, without shifting a significant portion of our limited resources to support an arms race and procure weapons systems that exceed our normal defense requirements,” he said before the delegates of the Banyan Tree Leadership Forum at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington D.C. He said the stronger US military presence in the Philippines will soothe and calm the investment climate. Thus, “it enables us to focus better on developing a solid economic base to combat poverty, unemployment, illiteracy and disease,” he said. EDCA, signed last week ahead of the state visit of US President Barack Obama, allows American soldiers to greater access military bases. It is seen as an important pillar of the country’s regional security policy as well as an effective response mechanism to humanitarian and natural disasters. “A stronger American military presence in the Philippines and greater interoperability between our respective armed forces dramatically Read More …

Protesters shout anti-U.S. slogans during a protest rally at the gates of Camp Aguinaldo, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarters, where the opening ceremony of the Balikatan 2014 U.S-Philippine military joint exercise is being held in Quezon city, metro Manila May 5, 2014. According to an AFP news release, around 3,000 Filipino soldiers and 2,500 U.S. soldiers will participate in the Philippines-U.S. Balikatan 2014 military exercises which will focus on maritime security and humanitarian assistance and disaster response. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – President Benigno Aquino III’s statement last week blaming cooperatives for the worsening power crisis in Mindanao did not sit well with a party-list lawmaker. “[Aquino] once again pass[ed] the blame to others the dismal failure of his administration to effectively respond to the perennial power woes of the people in Mindanao,” Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said in a statement Monday. Zarate said the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001 is the real culprit behind the hours-long rotational brownouts being experienced by residents in Mindanao. “He got the power crisis upside down,” Zarate said of Aquino. “His prescriptions of mere changes in the EPIRA to supposedly facilitate more competition and increase the number of generating plants are all cosmetic.” Aquino criticized power cooperatives in Mindanao last week for allegedly failing to address the power shortage there, saying they only decided to invest in generators this year despite being advised as early as 2013 to purchase them in preparation for a possible tightening of Read More …

Wowie de Guzman and Sheryl Ann Reyes (MNS photo) One day after his wife was laid to rest, former actor Wowie De Guzman said he still could not believe that his partner has passed away. De Guzman said he did not know what to do after the funeral service. “Nung nag-uwian na, hindi mo alam kung ano na ang susunod, especially sa akin kasi umikot ang mundo ko sa asawa ko lang. Hindi ko na alam kung paano ako magdedesisyon. Nagkaroon ng patlang ‘yung buhay ko bigla. Sabi ko nga paano ko kaya tatapusin ang isang araw na wala ang asawa ko,” he said. De Guzman’s wife, Sheryl Ann Reyes, died two weeks ago after taking a muscle pain reliever and months of having erratic blood pressure, the ex-actor had said. The “Mara Clara” actor said he could not help but blame himself for what happened because he believes he could have done something to prevent his wife’s death. “’Yung wife ko kasi medyo mataray sa akin parati. Pero at that time kasi, nung tumataas ‘yung blood pressure niya, iniiwasan ko makipagtalo sa kanya because baka nga tumaas. After niya manganak, nung nakita ko ‘yung hirap niya, parang lumaki lalo ‘yung respeto ko sa kanya because ang hirap pala maging ina. Sabi ko lahat ng gusto mo ibibigay ko, lahat gagawin ko para sa kanya. Siguro kung pinilit ko siya na mag-check up siya, siguro pwedeng nalaman namin kung ano yung nangyayari sa kanya,” he said. Asked where he draws Read More …

Introduced by Deputy Consul General Imelda Panolong as “cool, calm and composed” the Filipino American community of Los Angeles welcomed Leo Herrera-Lim as the new Consul General of the Philippine Consulate in Los Angeles, whose jurisdiction includes Southern California, Southern Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. A career diplomat, Consul General Lim arrived on Thursday, April 17, 2014 after serving as the Consul General of the Philippine Consulate General in Chicago, Illinois where this writer used to live and briefly speaking with him about it as we share common friends in Chicago’s Fil-Am community. He assumes the post left by Consul General Hellen Barber-Dela Vega who is now with the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila. In his animated welcoming remarks, Consul General Leo Herrera-Lim describes this new post as a “more challenging” post because it encompasses a wider range of responsibility. As compared to his previous post, Chicago’s Fil-Am community only comprises an area much like San Diego’s 350,000 Filipino constituency. Lims’ vision for the LA Fil-Am community includes a collective “progress together” working relationship. He will leave his door wide opened accessible to those who wish to speak with him and encourages everyone to just “knock” on his door. During our brief conversation, this writer learned that we share the same Alma Mater, the University of the Philippines, though he belongs to the younger generation while Ambassador Willy Gaa and I were contemporaries. He has a degree in Economics and Law and is married to Fidelis Cariño. They have a son, Leonardo Ignatius and Read More …