Maniolas

The Philippine National Police has formed a special task group to investigate an ambush that wounded Iligan Rep. Vicente Belmonte and killed three people in Laguindigan town in Misamis Oriental Thursday afternoon. Police Regional Office 10 spokesman Superintendent Bernard Mendoza said this aims to coordinate findings and actions on the case, radio dzBB’s Tuesday Niu reported early Friday. Regional police head Chief Superintendent Isagani Genabe Jr. also ordered all town police stations in the province to conduct checkpoint operations against the perpetrators. On Thursday, three people were killed while three others were injured in an ambush on Belmonte’s convoy just as it was leaving the Laguindigan Airport.  In an interview on dzBB Thursday, Mendoza said sketchy initial reports indicated that the congressman and his party had just left the airport and were at the crossing leading to Iligan when the ambush occurred. He said at least two armed men in a van blocked their path and opened fire. The van—reportedly with a yellow license plate—was burning when it was located near the airport, he added. Meanwhile, Mendoza said they are still not discounting the possibility that a personal grudge could be the motive for the ambush. Belmonte had told GMA News TV’s QRT that he believes the ambush was politically motivated. Mendoza said they are still looking at all possible angles and are not discounting anything at this time. —Joel Locsin/KG, GMA News

Samar roads and bridges damaged by Ruby. People cross a bridge which was damaged by Typhoon Ruby (Hagupit) in San Julian, Eastern Samar on Wednesday, December 10. Emergency response teams are struggling to reach coastal villages in Samar which was hardest hit by Ruby where thousands of homes have been wrecked, suggesting the Red Cross’s estimated death toll of 27 may rise. Reuters/Erik De Castro The total Typhoon Ruby (Hagupit) damage estimate rose to P3.339 billion as of Thursday night, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said. In its 8 p.m. update, the NDRRMC said the estimate was for southern Luzon, Bicol, Western Visayas and Eastern Visayas and it included P1.426 billion in infrastructure and P 1.912 billion in agriculture. The NDRRMC also said the death toll rose to 19 while the number of affected included 694,277 families or 2,915,262 people. Of these, 186,694 families or 868,264 people are being served inside and outside 3,003 evacuation centers. The NDRRMC added that 8,694 houses were destroyed while 39,087 were damaged. On the other hand, 12, provinces are still experiencing power outages. — Joel Locsin/ELR, GMA News

Be true in your actions, and dedicate your talents to uplift the lives of Filipinos. This was the gist of Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno’s Christmas message to the judiciary, posted on the Supreme Court website Thursday.  “Ang buod ng Pasko ay ang pagdiriwang sa pag-alay ng buhay. Ialay natin ang sarili, ang hirap at ginhawa, ang kalungkutan at saya, at ang kahinaan at lakas, para sa Diyos na siyang bukal ng kabutihan at sa taumbayang uhaw sa katarungan at katotohanan,” Sereno said. She also called on the judiciary to dedicate their talents for the country, and to fulfill their promise to live simple lives. On the other hand, she asked the judiciary not to forget the needy and to help them through work and public service. “Maging tapat tayo sa lahat ng bahagi ng ating buhay at bigyan diin natin ang paggamit ng galing at talino na likas sa atin upang maiahon ang ating mahal na bayan,” she said. — Joel Locsin/JST, GMA News

A Malacañang official assured the public on Wednesday that deadly bus explosion in Bukidnon will be fully investigated. At a press briefing, deputy presidential spokesman Usec. Abigail Valte condemned the incident, and said authorities are already hunting down those behind the bombing. “The AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] is now supporting the PNP [Philippine National Police] as to finding the perpetrators of this act,” Valte told reporters. “To my knowledge, there are no groups yet—at least as far as I was informed—that have claimed responsibility; but, certainly, the full investigation is already underway,” she added. An improvised explosive device went off inside a Rural Transit Mindanao bus located in Maramag town late Tuesday afternoon, killing 11 people and hurting 21 others. On Wednesday, the military reduced the number of fatalities to 10. The number of wounded persons was placed at 31.      Military spokesman Col. Resty Padilla said the bus explosion might be a terrorist act, but Bukidnon Gov. Jose Maria Zubiri Jr. said extortion may be the motive behind the incident.  Valte also assured government assistance for the victims of the bombing. “We do extend our sympathies to the families of the nine as well as the injured, and we will be assisting in any way that we can for what has happened to them,” Valte said. — Andreo Calonzo/RSJ, GMA News

Ruby victims in Samar rise from the rubble. Typhoon victims on Tuesday, December 9, recover a television set from the ruins of a house destroyed by Typhoon Ruby (Hagupit) in San Julian, Eastern Samar on December 6. Emergency workers are struggling to reach coastal villages on an island hardest hit by Ruby where thousands of homes have been wrecked by powerful winds and a storm surge rising three to four meters (10 to 13 feet). Reuters/Erik De Castro The national government and aid agencies rushed relief supplies Wednesday to hundreds of thousands of people displaced by a powerful typhoon, as survivors sifted through debris to rebuild their lives. Military cargo planes will make eight deliveries to worst-hit Samar, a poor farming island in the central region, while two Red Cross convoys will deliver thousands of food packs, water purifiers, blankets and hygiene kits, officials said. “We are catching up on food delivery, especially in the far-flung areas, isolated areas in the mountains… We will strive to deliver to these areas today,” Social Welfare Minister Corazon Soliman said in a televised briefing. An estimated 390,000 people, mostly in Samar, need food and temporary shelter assistance, Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon told AFP. Ruby left over two dozen people dead, the Red Cross said, after it slammed the central region with 210-kilometer (130-mile) per hour winds over the weekend and brushed past the capital Manila. Over a million fled to shelters ahead of the storm as authorities avoided a repeat of Read More …