Maniolas

On the eve of the 46th anniversary of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), the Armed Forces of the Philippines on Thursday renewed its call for the group and its armed wing, the New People’s Army, to end armed struggle, saying they have been harmful to the very communities they purportedly wish to help. “The senseless attacks perpetrated by the NPA against peaceful communities and infrastructure projects have caused more suffering and denied the people of development in the countryside. We must reflect why we have allowed ourselves and our communities to endure forty six years of bloody violence and senseless deaths among fellow Filipinos,” military information chief Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc said in a press release. The CPP-NPA is still waging a protracted war in the Philippines, which is considered as the longest running insurgency in Asia. The military estimates the CPP-NPA membership at about 4,000. But Cabunoc enjoined the CPP to lay down their arms to foster peace in the country. “We can have the choice between a better life for ourselves and our children by embracing peace or continued violence and poverty through bloody armed conflict. The door for reconciliation and healing remains open to all our misguided brothers who want to embrace peace,” he said. “It has been proven that nobody is a real winner in bloody armed conflicts. We are witness to the endless misery experienced by our own people who are caught in the crossfire,” Cabunoc added. The AFP, as well as the Read More …

The National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) probe on the anomalies in the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) will be finished in three to four months, Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said on Wednesday. In a report of Radyo DZBB reporter Tuesday Niu, De Lima was quoted as saying that the NBI’s probe on various anomalies in the NBP will be completed in the first quarter of 2015, as the Bureau already have its initial findings. De Lima said to be included in the NBI’s investigation report are recommendations on actions that must be implemented by the NBP and the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor). On December 15, in a surprise inspection of the maximum security compound of the NBP, De Lima together with agents of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the NBI, found several rooms or kubol with luxury amenities such as a sauna, jacuzzi with a television screen, a 50-inch flat screen TV, a split-type aircon, a home theater system and an LCD projector. One cell was also found to have a recording studio, complete with a stage and sound system for live performances. Expensive items such as shoes, sunglasses, watches, gadgets and even sex toys were also discovered in some of the kubols, along with suspected packs of shabu. Among the issues being investigated by the NBI is the alleged drug manufacturing and trading inside the NBP. De Lima, meanwhile, maintained that there is no need for BuCor director Franklin Jesus Bucayu to step down from his post amid Read More …

As it feted them for overcoming threats this year, the Department of Education at Christmas urged teachers and students to “rekindle” the goodness amid the darkness of uncertainty. DepEd Secretary Armin Luistro said many in the academic community had given much of themselves, even going beyond the call of duty. “This Christmas, I wish for all of you to rekindle that goodness inside and magnify it. Remind others, by way of gratefulness, that they too have been beacons of good in your lives.  Find peace knowing that in your own little way, you have contributed a great deal of good in a world bereft of it,” he said. Luistro said Christmas should remind people of the “goodness that comes into the world even as it is challenged by the darkness of uncertainty.” This year, he said people have seen examples of this throughout the year in the persons of those within the Department “who have given much of themselves so that our work may continue.” “Our teachers have gone beyond their call to do remarkable things like deflect gunmen and protect their students. Administrators and officials from local offices have been outstanding in shepherding their people, in always being quick to offer a word of care and thanks,” he said. “Our donors too have been on call, ready to engage us, for what little or big needs we might have. Even our students have been good citizens,” he added. “It is very difficult to lose hope in the company of Read More …

A lotto bettor is now P32.685 million richer after bagging the jackpot of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office’s Lotto 6/42 draw Tuesday night. The PCSO said the bettor got the combination of 11-04-09-29-37-24 to bag the jackpot worth P32,685,212. However, as in the past, the PCSO is not likely to name the winner for security reasons. Last Dec. 8, a lotto bettor won the Megalotto 6/45 draw, getting the combination of 17-13-27-08-28-09 to win the jackpot worth P9 million. On Dec. 3, three bettors shared the Megalotto 6/45 jackpot of P47,139,388 after getting the combination of 05-23-28-11-14-09. Last Nov. 24, a lone bettor got the combination of 06-08-11-26-27-29 to win P70,166,400 in the Grand Lotto draw. On Nov. 7, a bettor got the combination of 38-28-11-12-40-19 to win the Megalotto 6/45 jackpot worth P68,758,280.  — Joel Locsin/ELR, GMA News

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Tuesday said on Tuesday there is nothing illegal in the transfer of 19 inmates from the New Bilibid Prisons to the National Bureau of Investigation headquarters in Manila. De Lima issued the statement following the filing of separate petitions by three of the 19 transfered inmates, who claimed their constitutional right to security were violated when they were taken out of the national penitentiary. De Lima acknowledged that the transfered inmates have rights but they are limited rights. “Inmates are called persons deprived of liberty…. by virtue of their conviction,” she said. De Lima said the transfer of the inmates has “enough (legal) basis,” adding that the situation was considered “exceptional” because it involved “identified high-risk and high-value inmates.” “May pagka-emergency situation pa nga because all those information and reports include intelligence reports that we have been receiving the past months. So we really need to take a decisive action to remedy the situation,” said De Lima. De Lima stressed that personnel from the DOJ, the BuCor and the NBI are all aware of their mandate, especially under the BuCor Modernization Law. “How can that (transfer to NBI) be illegal when the administration of the correctional systen is under the Department of Justice,” said De Lima. As part of its safekeeping and reformative programs for the inmates, the BuCor ensures that inmates are “completely incapacitated” from committing further criminal activities and to totally “cut them off from their criminal network.” De Lima also said Read More …