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AFP: Naval blockade in place vs. Sabah abductors

 News
Apr 052014
 
AFP: Naval blockade in place vs. Sabah abductors

The Armed Forces of the Philippines on Saturday said a Philippine Navy unit has set up naval blockade against suspects in the abduction of a Filipina worker and a Chinese tourist at the Singamata resort near Semporna in Sabah on Wednesday. In a text message to GMA News Online, AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala said the Naval Task Force 62 has started its operations, even as units of the military’s Western Mindanao Command continue their search and rescue operations in the Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi areas, “where the two kidnapped victims were supposedly brought by kidnappers from Sabah.” In Malacañang, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said on state-run dzRB the AFP is also in contact with the Philippine National Police to help in the search. “So far, [may] combined efforts ng AFP at saka ng PNP… sa pag-recover at paghahanap doon sa dalawang kidnap victims,” she said. Asked if the government is set to coordinate with Chinese authorities in the search, Valte said: “I’ve not heard of any proposal to do that, at this time.” A report from Agence France-Presse on Friday indicated China is pressuring Malaysia to rescuekidnapped Chinese tourist. Earlier, Zagala said the Abu Sayyaf Group may be behind the abduction. He said the victims were kidnapped by seven armed men believed to be members of an Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) unit in Tawi-Tawi. One of the members of the unit is Murphy Ambang Ladia (also known as Haji Gulam), a former member of the Moro National Read More …

Palace backs Miriam Santiago meeting with GPH panel chair on Bangsamoro peace deal

 General, News
Apr 052014
 
Palace backs Miriam Santiago meeting with GPH panel chair on Bangsamoro peace deal

Malacañang on Saturday expressed support on government peace panel chair Miriam Coronel-Ferrer’s decision to meet with Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago to discuss the newly-signed Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro. “Mabuti po ‘yon kasi maganda din po na nagkaroon sila ng ganitong exchange because the government is always open to explain [the] contents of the agreement,” she said in an interview on state-run dzRB radio. “Hopefully, matuloy po ‘yung pag-uusap ni Senator Santiago at ni Ma’am [Miriam Coronel-]Ferrer para mapakita kung ano ho ‘yung mga proseso at ano ho ‘yung annexes, ‘yung mga nilalaman nung Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro [CAB],” she added. Asked to comment on Santiago’s claim that the historic peace agreement is unconstitutional, Valte said: “Should there be a challenge to it in the Supreme Court, siyempre, lahat po tayo ay umaasa na maa-uphold po ‘yung constitutionality nung CAB.” Earlier, Senator Santiago said the peace agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front on the Bangsamoro violates the 1987 Constitution because it creates a “substate.” Senator Santiago chairs the Senate committee on constitutional amendments. “The Bangsamoro Agreement appear(s) to facilitate the secession of the Bangsamoro from our country, in a manner similar to the secession of Kosovo and Crimea,” Santiago told graduates of the Gordon College on Wednesday. Last week, the Philippine government and the MILF signed a comprehensive peace pact that is expected to end the decades-long armed conflict in Mindanao. However, government peace negotiators have insisted the peace agreement with the MILF was done in Read More …

Napoles's doctors prepare for surgery

 News
Apr 042014
 
Napoles's doctors prepare for surgery

Detained businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles’s team of private doctors may operate on her at the government-run Ospital ng Makati (OsMak) by Sunday. On Friday, OsMak doctors met with Napoles’s team of doctors to discuss the medical procedures that will be performed to remove a cyst in her uterus, for which a Makati court allowed her to seek treatment. The OsMak doctors also turned over the results of medical tests that they have done on her. “We discussed liability and accountability as attending physicians…The liability and accountability will now fall on the laps of the attending physicians of Mrs. Napoles,” announced OsMak director Dr. Perry Ishmael Peralta in a press conference aired on GMA News’ “24 Oras” Friday evening. It may take one to two days for Napoles’ doctors to review the results of the medical tests, thus, the operation might be performed on Sunday, the report said. “Ang request naman ng team (ni Napoles), which we gave in to, is they would like to review all the tests that we’ve performed. They would like to reexamine Mrs. Napoles before we can really set a date for the procedure,” Peralta said. Napoles’s doctors meanwhile said they will just review the results turned over by OsMak. However, doctors from St. Luke’s Medical Center may also conduct additional screenings to ensure that Napoles would not suffer any complications from the medical operation, “24 Oras” said. Earlier laboratory test results showed Napoles has a cyst in her uterus. She has also complained of abdominal Read More …

NBI report on Vitangcol yet to reach De Lima's office

 General
Apr 042014
 
NBI report on Vitangcol yet to reach De Lima's office

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima has yet to receive the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) report on the investigation it conducted on the alleged $30-million extortion claim against Metro Rail Transit general manager Al Vitangcol III. De Lima on Friday admitted that while the NBI fact-finding team has completed its investigation on the controversy, the report still has to be reviewed by the bureau’s legal division. “Ganoon ang SOP [standard operating procedure] sa NBI. Before they submit officially a report or before they release the transmittal, kung may papakasuhan nire-review muna iyan ng legal to make sure that the legal aspects are grounded on solid basis,” she said. De Lima said from the NBI legal department, the report will next land on the desk of NBI Director Virgilio Mendoza for his approval. Only after Mendez has given his go signal will the report be transmitted to De Lima’s office. “Since this is a high profile case, they might clear it with me before it is finally released,” De Lima said. “So I am actually waiting for it already. Standby na ako dyan sa report na iyan.” Earlier reports, citing leaked documents, claimed that Vitangcol was cleared from possible charges for lack of evidence, and that claims that he demanded money from Czech firm Inekon Group was not corroborated. The NBI investigated the alleged extortion upon instructions from President Benigno Aquino III. Czech Ambassador Josef Rychtar claimed Vitangcol and other officials tried to extort $30 million from Inekon in order for Read More …

Draft Bangsamoro law to be submitted by April or May –Jaafar

 News
Mar 312014
 
Draft Bangsamoro law to be submitted by April or May –Jaafar

The Bangsamoro Transition Commission has missed its self-imposed deadline to submit the draft law that will embody the recently signed peace deal between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Instead of March 31, the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law will be submitted to President Benigno Aquino III by April or May, MILF vice chairman Ghazali Jaafar told GMA News on Monday. “Yung ibinigay na deadline, hindi kaya. Pero palagay ko kaya nila next month April, within April at palagay ko by May andyan na yan sa Palasyo, kay Pangulong Aquino,” Jaafar said. He said it will depend on Aquino when he will forward the draft law to Congress for approval. The President, who witnessed the historic signing of the peace deal Thursday last week, is expected to certify the measure as urgent. Once enacted, the Basic Law will be subjected to a plebiscite in the proposed Bangsamoro territory. Once it is ratified, an enhanced Bangsamoro autonomous region will be established, replacing the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Jaafar said the Bangsamoro Transition Commission is working hard to finish the draft. The commission has 15 members, eight from MILF and seven from the government. “Tuloy tuloy, continuous. As a matter of fact, nago-overtime sila,” he said. Mohagher Iqbal, MILF chief peace negotiator and head of the Transition Commission, said they are in the process of polishing the first draft that still “needs to undergo several processes especially in relation to hard issues.” “The Transition Commission is made up Read More …

Singapore president to hand over Yolanda aid during PHL visit

 News
Mar 312014
 
Singapore president to hand over Yolanda aid during PHL visit

Singapore President Tony Tan Keng Yam will make his first state visit to the Philippines this week to hand over aid to survivors of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan). In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Tan will be in the Philippines from April 2 to 5 to meet with President Benigno Aquino III on defense, trade and investment, and the Filipino community in Singapore. Tan will also fly to Basey town in Western Samar, one of the areas affected by Yolanda, to give medical supplies to a local hospital, the DFA said. In Manila, the Singaporean leader will also hand over donations, contributed by the people of Singapore, to the partners of the Singapore Red Cross involved in the post-Yolanda rehabilitation projects. In November last year, Yolanda ripped through central Philippines, leaving over 6,200 dead based on official government records. Tan, Singapore’s ceremonial head, will be accompanied by several ministers and members of the Singaporean parliament during his visit, according to the DFA. Over 180,000 Filipinos are working in Singapore as of December 2012, based on Philippine government records. In 2011, Aquino went on a state visit to Singapore, where he discussed the Philippines’ territorial dispute with China, tourism and trade with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. —Andreo Calonzo/KBK, GMA News

Pork barrel cases to be resolved ‘sooner than you think’ – Ombudsman

 News
Mar 282014
 
Pork barrel cases to be resolved ‘sooner than you think’ – Ombudsman

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales on Friday hinted that her office was on the verge of taking action on the pork barrel fund scam cases filed with them by the Department of Justice six months earlier. In its filing, the DOJ accused 38 former and incumbent government officials and lawmakers of plunder, malversation and corruption of public officials. “Rest assured, you will get your resolution [in the pork barrel case] sooner than you think,” Morales said in a report aired Friday on GMA 7’s “24 Oras”. Morales, who was in Davao for the inauguration of the Office of the Ombudsman-Mindanao, had wanted the pork scam cases resolved earlier. However, legal processes had to be followed. “If we resolve the case in the immediate future, I’m not going to tell you how immediate is immediate, then we will let the five-day period to file a motion reconsideration (MR) pass. In the event that we find probable cause, when the MR is filed, we will resolve it ASAP,” Morales said. Among the respondents in the pork scam cases are Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr. as well as alleged pork barrel scam operator Janet Lim-Napoles. Just last week, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago called on the Office of the Ombudsman to at least file charges against the more prominent and high-ranking officials implicated in pork barrel cases. Santiago worried that the public would lose interest on the matter if the investigation dragged on for too long. Morales, however, pointed out that it Read More …

PHL signs military aircraft contracts for jets, helicopters

 News
Mar 282014
 
PHL signs military aircraft contracts for jets, helicopters

The Philippines on Friday signed agreements to buy $528 million worth of military aircraft from South Korea and Canada amid ongoing territorial disputes with China. “After more than four decades of stagnancy in its dream of improving its capability, our air force has found a promise of new life with the realization of our (military) modernization program,” Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said. Korea Aerospace Industries will deliver 12 FA-50 jets worth P18.9 billion in just over three years under a contract agreed by defense officials and South Korean government representatives. The Philippines also completed a P4.8-billion contract with Canadian Commercial Corp. and Canada’s Bell Helicopters to build eight helicopters for the military. The twin deals are part of the Philippines’ P75-billion effort to upgrade its armed forces, particularly units tasked with patrolling disputed territory in the South China Sea. These units are dwarfed by those of neighboring China, which claims most of the area, including waters and islets much closer to the Philippines. China said its coast guard on March 9 blocked two Philippine-flagged vessels approaching Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal), which is guarded by a small group of Filipino marines but is also claimed by Beijing, the latest in a string of such confrontations. Under the military upgrade program, President Benigno Aquino’s government has also acquired two refurbished frigates from the US Coast Guard. — Agence France-Presse

High-ranking officials involved in P56-B rice smuggling – Customs report

 News
Mar 282014
 
High-ranking officials involved in P56-B rice smuggling - Customs report

High-ranking government officials–some allegedly from as high up as Malacañang and the Senate–were involved in multibillion-peso rice smuggling allegedly perpetrated by Davidson Bangayan also known as David Tan, according to an internal Bureau of Customs report. According to a BOC intelligence report that was shown to GMA News, Bangayan smuggled about 80 million sacks or four million metric tons (MT) of rice–with an estimated value of P56 billion–into the country in 2009. However, a source from the BOC said some of the money from the smuggled rice was divided among high-ranking officials of the government. Another bureau report shown to GMA News names those who were allegedly involved in Bangayan’s rice smuggling. Some of the names that appeared in the BOC report were of lawmakers and high-ranking officials of Malacañang and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), GMA News’ “24 Oras” said in an exclusive report aired on Friday. There were also top officials of the BOC as well as some leaders of a religious group allegedly involved rice smuggling anomaly, the report added. GMA News is still trying to reach Bangayan as of posting time. However, Bangayan has vehemently and repeatedly denied involvement in rice smuggling. He has also denied that he is David Tan. Meanwhile, in a separate interview, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV confirmed that there were indeed high -ranking government officials named in a report submitted to the Office of the President by BOC Intelligence Group deputy commissioner Jessie Dellosa. Trillanes refused to divulge the names of the government officials mentioned in the Read More …

Jinggoy to Ombudsman: Don't give in to pressure, publicity in ‘pork’ probe

 News
Mar 232014
 
Jinggoy to Ombudsman: Don't give in to pressure, publicity in ‘pork’ probe

Senator Jinggoy Estrada said Sunday that he hopes the Office of the Ombudsman will not be swayed by pressure and publicity in its investigation into the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam. In a statement released Sunday, Estrada said he–and fellow senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Bong Revilla Jr.–”were continuously crucified and demonized in various forums: mass media, cyberspace, including the Senate blue ribbon committee.”  Witnesses have linked him to the scam. Ruby Tuason, who used to work for former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada and former senator Loi Estrada, testified in February that she delivered bags of money to Senator Estrada’s office.  Earlier this month, Technology Research Center director general Dennis Cunanan said Estrada and Revilla chose the allegedly bogus NGOs that received their PDAF allocations. Cunanan is on leave from the TRC and, like Tuason, faces plunder complaints over the scam. Tremendous pressure, unfair publicity “I wish that the Ombudsman will not give in to the tremendous pressure and unfair publicity generated by this controversy with extreme prejudice against me and my two colleagues,” he said. “I also hope that she will not be rushed into making decisions and that she observes the proper legal processes, including the rights of the respondents during preliminary investigation,” Estrada added. He added his counter-affidavit to a plunder complaint filed against him in September should show Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales that “truly there is no plunder case or any case to speak of.”  Estrada, who has denied involvement in a supposed scam that allegedly diverted PDAF Read More …

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