Maniolas

Manila police release CCTV footage of hazing victim. CCTV footage provided to the Manila Police District by the One Archers Place condominium along Taft Avenue in Manila on Monday, June 30, shows alleged members of a fraternity dragging the body of hazing victim Guillo Servando, a student of DLSU-College of St. Benilde, out of a room on June 28. Servando was declared dead on arrival at a hospital from traumatic injuries. Danny Pata Experts believe that Guilo Servando could’ve survived his hazing if his emergency situation was reported to the authorities more quickly. “Pwedeng mabuhay yung taong ‘yun eh, kung ‘di nagdalawang isip na tumawag sa ‘min. Pwedeng segundo diyan importante ang isang buhay, pwede nating masalba,” Jesse Laurel, Patrol 117 Technical Supervisor, told GMA News’ “24 Oras” Tuesday. Servando, the latest in hazing-related deaths, was found unconscious at the 29th floor of One Archers Place on Taft Avenue last weekend. Bruises found on his legs and back by the Manila Police District’s homicide division bolstered suspicions that he was a victim of hazing.  According to the “24 Oras” report, the damage inflicted to the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde’s student released an excessive amount myoglobin into his bloodstream.  Myoglobin is a protein which the US National Library of Medicine reported can damage kidney cells, leading to acute renal failure and acute tubular necrosis.  Dr. Butch Beringuela, a surgeon, said: “Naaipon yung mga toxin sa katawan, hindi na na-fi-filter ng kidney, after the kidney injury, nagkakaroon ng kidney failure.” Read More …

If it is working well in the high-profile Maguindanao massacre case, perhaps it can also work in the pork barrel scam cases now pending with the Sandiganbayan. This was the argument raised by two groups in their letter to the Supreme Court expressing support to the bid to create special courts that would specifically hear cases related to the alleged systematic misuse of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF). In a submission, the Alternative Law Groups (ALG) and the Transparency and Accountability Network (TAN) said the SC should designate a special division of the anti-graft court “in the interest of justice and due to compelling reasons.” “We humbly ask the Supreme Court to take judicial notice of the historic and unprecedented nature of the PDAF cases which are imbued with public interest, the transactions involved, the complexities of the issues, and the number of high-ranking government officials involved,” the groups said. The groups cited the four-year-old Maguindanao massacre trial to emphasize the significance of creating a special court to expedite court proceedings. The multiple murder trial stemmed from the November 23, 2009 killings of 58 people, including 32 journalists, by armed men allegedly led by the powerful Ampatuan clan in Maguindanao. The Regional Trial Court Branch 221 in Quezon City had earlier been turned into a special court to specifically handle Maguindanao massacre-related cases. Court proceedings are held twice a week for the entire day on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Mondays, meanwhile, are reserved for hearing motions stemming from the case. Judge Read More …

(Updated 9:28 p.m.) Senators on Tuesday lauded the Supreme Court ruling that found the Aquino administration’s Disbursement Acceleration Program unconstitutional, saying the high tribunal in doing so upheld Congress’ exclusive authority to set the national budget. Senator Jinggoy Estrada, whose privilege speech put the DAP in the spotlight, said budget officials must be held liable for certain acts declared unconstitutional by the high tribunal. “Now that the highest court of the land said that the DAP mechanism is unconstitutional and illegal, heads must roll and budget officials must be held accountable,” Estrada said in a statement issued by his office Tuesday while he is in detention in connection with the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam. Estrada commended the high court for “respecting and upholding Congress’ exclusive power of the purse.” Earlier in the day, the SC declared certain “acts and practices” under the DAP as unconstitutional, including the use of withdrawn unobligated allotments and unreleased appropriations as savings. The DAP started making headlines last September after Estrada bared during a privilege speech that he and other senators who favored former Chief Justice Renato Corona’s conviction in 2012 received P50 million in additional funds after the impeachment trial. Budget Secretary Florencio Abad later admitted that the additional funds came from the DAP, but maintained that the allocations were neither bribes nor incentives. Estrada delivered the speech after he, Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile and Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. were charged with plunder and graft before the Ombudsman in connection with the pork Read More …

Associated Press 4:55 pm | Monday, June 30th, 2014 Loading the player… Video from Associated Press SAN ANTONIO, Philippines — More than 100 Filipino and US marines in assault amphibious vehicles conducted a mock assault on imaginary enemies in military drills Monday on a beach in northwestern Philippines facing the South China Sea, where Manila is locked in a territorial dispute with China. The amphibious tanks sailed from a US ship anchored a distance away, then rolled onto the beach of San Antonio, Zambales, northwest of the Philippine capital Manila, disgorging the Filipino and American sailors and marines armed with automatic rifles. The exercise is part of the annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training that the US conducts with its allies in Asia, including the Philippines, to address maritime security, strengthen partnerships and enhance interoperability. Officials said the maneuvers were not directed at China, which has been criticized for its increasingly assertive behavior in disputed South China Sea territories. The Philippines, the oldest of Washington’s five defense treaty allies in Asia, has turned to the US to modernize its ill-equipped military amid the increasingly tense territorial rifts with China. “Whenever we do an exercise, we always train to improve our capabilities, it is not meant for whatever threat or situation that are current,” said Philippine Navy Commodore Roland Joseph Mercado. Marine Maj. Damon Torres, commanding officer of the US landing force in the exercise, said the drills were a good opportunity to coordinate and learn about each other’s capabilities. China, Read More …

By Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net 3:08 pm | Monday, June 30th, 2014 MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) is looking into the alleged practice of displaying Filipino domestic helpers in a mall in Singapore, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Monday. “The POLO can refer the matter to the Singapore police if reports of maltreatment and abuse are validated,” DFA spokesman Charles Jose said in a press conference. “The Philippine Government, in coordination with Singapore authorities, is ready to take all necessary steps to increase the protection of our Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Singapore,” he said. International news organization Al Jazeera reported about the plight of the domestic workers in “maid agencies” in Singapore and said that workers are made to sit beneath signs and posters that testify to their qualities, or advertise promo rates and discounts. “These are legitimate agencies that are plying their business of supplying services to those in need of household service workers,” Jose said. “That itself is not illegal, but we have to look into the manner in which they are promoting their business,” he said. The recruitment practices of the agencies will also be investigated by the POLO. Jose said that there are around 70,000 household service workers in Singapore out of the more than 180,000 Filipinos there. RELATED STORIESBinay wants gov’t probe on Singapore’s ‘discount maids’ POEA chief defends Filipino maids in Singapore over bus issue Follow Us Other Stories: Binay wants gov’t probe on Singapore’s ‘discount maids’ Entries now being accepted Read More …