Maniolas

Commission on Election Chairman Andres Bautista demonstrates the function of a vote-counting machine (VCM), which will be used for the May 9 national and local elections, at a warehouse in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, Thursday. The machines are currently undergoing Hardware Acceptance Test (HAT).(MNS photo) MANILA  (Mabuhay) – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Monday downplayed an attack by hacker group Anonymous Philippines that defaced its website on Sunday night. Comelec chairman Andres Bautista said the hackers failed to access any confidential information which may derail the May 9 elections. “I was told wala naman daw confidential information na nakuha. Kumbaga, hindi naman ito makakaapekto sa aming paghahanda para sa ating darating na halalan,” he said. In the message posted on the website, Anonymous Philippines lashed out at the poll body for rejecting some of the security features needed in the automated polls. The group also claimed obtaining the voter database from the website’s voting precinct finder. But Bautista said that the group did not need to hack the website to get a hold of the voter database. A copy of the voter database may be requested from the Comelec for public use, he said. The Comelec chief said the breach of their website system is no extraordinary feat, noting that other local and foreign government websites have also fallen to hacker attacks. “Alam din naman natin na itong pagha-hack ng mga public website ay nangyari na sa mga ibang ahensya ng pamahalaan—hindi lang dito sa atin kundi maging sa ibang Read More …

— Vice President Jejomar Binay and Sen. Gringo Honasan show their certificates of candidacy at the Commission on Election in Manila on Monday, the first day of filing of COCs. Binay and Honasan will run under the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) for the 2016 election. (MNS photo) MANILA  (Mabuhay) – The United Nationalist Alliance has moved to boost the candidacy of its vice presidential candidate Senator Gringo Honasan after landing at the tail-end of pre-election surveys. UNA president and Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco on Monday said the party has already met to address Honasan’s lagging ratings. “Si Sen. Gringo [Honasan] ho, kasi noong una ho, laging nasa isip niya at sinasabi niya, ang pinakaimportanteng laban dito ‘yong presidente. Pero, nag-meeting na ho kami. Sabi namin sa kaniya, kailangan na rin niyang mag-ikot ng sarili niya,” Tiangco said in a radio interview. He said this is the reason Honasan will not be present in some of the sorties of Binay. “Kaya’t magkakaroon ho ng pagkakataon na hindi na sila magkasama ngayon. Dahil dati ang importante sa kaniya ay manalo si VP,” he said. Honasan is UNA’s vice president and assigned to strategize the campaign of Binay before he was tapped to be the Vice President’s running mate. Binay said earlier that Honasan will be the anti-crime czar in his administration if ever they both emerge victorious in the May 9 polls. Tiangco said since the local campaign has started, Binay will be very busy attending proclamation rallies upon the request of Read More …

The Commission on Election (Comelec) is not giving up its legal tussle with the Supreme Court to disqualify Senator Grace Llamanzares to run in the May 9presidential elections. For many, like myself, consider the Supreme Court’s decision as a complete disregard of the provisions under the Constitution, when it allowed that Senator Llamanzares is eligible to run president. In a 56-page motion for reconsideration, the Comelec, spearheaded by Commissioner Arthur Lim, urged justices to re-consider its ruling since there was no majority vote finding Senator Llamanzares a natural born citizen. Comelec warned that the controversial decision has “heightened political passions in the country that could possibly ignite civil strife.” The poll body argued that there was no factual or legal basis for the ruling that Llamanzares is a qualified presidential candidate for the May 9 elections. In the same motion, Comelec asked the Supreme Court to re-deliberate and re-vote on the issue of citizenship to “avoid dire repercussions that the majority decision has brought in its wake.” The poll body was right, I think, in asking the Supreme Court to reexamine its constitutional ruling on the Poe Llamanzares case for its legal and constitutional infirmities. It is good to know that there are still some officials from Comelec who are not afraid to speak their legal minds if only to preserve the sanctity of the Philippine Constitution. It is a shame that some justices have decided to set aside what is clearly written in the Constitution to be able to kowtow to an influential Read More …

High level panel group shot: (From left) DTI Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo, DOST Undersecretary Amelia Guevara, DAR Secretary Virgilio De los Reyes, and DA Undersecretary Segfredo Serrano are the panelists of the High-Level Discussion on PH Agriculture, Manufacturing and Science and Technology held at the Philippine Embassy, Washington DC on 17 March 2016 WASHINGTON, D.C.— Secretary Virgilio De los Reyes of the Philippine Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and a panel of senior Philippine officials recently discussed the “opportunities and challenges” in Philippine agriculture, manufacturing, and science and technology, highlighting the country’s economic growth, the inclusiveness of progress, the sustainability of reforms, and the quality of the Filipino workforce. The panel discussion was held at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. on 17 March 2016. Secretary De los Reyes was joined by Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary Segfredo R. Serrano, Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Undersecretary Amelia P. Guevara, and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Ceferino S. Rodolfo, Jr. They also discussed initiatives aimed at building capacities and improving Philippine competitiveness in key sectors. Secretary De los Reyes asserted that agrarian reform has made lives better for Filipinos. Mandated under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Act of 1988 (CARP), DAR has assured ownership of land and access to technical support and legal services. The Secretary explained that “based on our statistics, most of the land under the scope of DAR has been distributed to small landowners.” The Secretary stated that DAR is in the process of digitizing a landholding database Read More …

LP chairman President Benigno S. Aquino III attends the “Daang Matuwid: To Be Continued…” of the ruling Liberal Party (LP) at the Corazon C. Aquino Kalayaan Hall of the Club Filipino in San Juan City on Monday (October 05). Also in photo are LP Vice Presidential Candidate Camarines Sur 3rd District Representative Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo and daughters Jessica Marie “Aika”, Janine Patricia “Tricia” Robredo and Jillian Therese “Jill” Robredo. (MNS photo) MANILA  (Mabuhay) – Following the latest pre-election survey ranking her third among vice presidential candidates, administration bet Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo said she intends to focus her campaign in areas in the Luzon region. “Mas bibigyan ko ng pansin yung Luzon kasi for the past several months, [sa] Visayas at Mindanao. Nakita na namin sa survey results na nagkakaroon na talaga ng dent ‘yun,” Robredo told reporters in an interview. Robredo, along with Liberal Party (LP) standard bearer Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, took her campaign to Pampanga on Tuesday. In the latest Pulse Asia survey, Robredo ranked behind Senators Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. and Francis “Chiz” Escudero with 20 percent. Although statistically tied with Escudero, Marcos edged his colleague by one point at 25 percent. Among the four locations, Robredo ranked highest in Visayas with 34 percent, followed by Mindanao with 19 percent, the rest of Luzon with 17 percent, and the National Capital Region with 12 percent. Robredo is optimistic that she could catch up with Escudero and Marcos by doubling her efforts in the campaign Read More …