Covering the week’s most noteworthy news stories throughout the Philippines for the Filipino-American and Global Filipino community.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte maintained that the government’s crackdown on drugs will continue despite heavy criticism against it in connection with the recent killing of teenagers. Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs came under fire following the deaths of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos and 19-year-old Carl Arnaiz, who were both killed by Caloocan City police in…
PHILIPPiNE Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday, September 15 said that President Rodrigo Duterte is unlikely to declare a nationwide martial law in response to possible violent demonstrations by leftists across the country. Last week, Duterte threatened that he may place the entire country under martial law if communist rebels “commit the mistake of staging…
MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte conferred the Gawad Mabini award to Philippine foreign service officials, including Consul General in Los Angeles Adelio Angelito Cruz, at the President’s Hall of Malacañang Palace on Wednesday, September 13. Cruz was conferred the Gawad Mabini with the rank of Dakilang Kamanong (Grand Cross). Under Presidential Decree 490, Gawad Mabini…
Both Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Armed Forces Chief Eduardo Año denied reports that members of the military are being recruited to join a coup d’etat plot against the administration of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. “Nothing to worry. There’s no coup,” Lorenzana told reporters after a Senate hearing on Thursday, September 14. “We have not…
Banner – MANILA — Several Philippine senators vowed to ensure a higher budget for the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) in 2018 after the House of Representatives approved a measly P1,000 (around $20) budget for the constitutional body next year. PH senators vow to fight for higher CHR budgetOne hundred and nineteen lawmakers from the…
MANILA – Tropical depression “Maring” (international name Doksuri) brought heavy rains and strong winds to Luzon, leaving at least two minors and an infant dead before exiting the landmass. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) reported that as of Wednesday morning, September 13, Maring was 270 kilometers west of Iba, Zambales, with…
The Office of the Ombudsman has affirmed the graft and usurpation of authority indictment of former Philippine President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III in connection with the botched Mamasapano operation that led to the deaths of 44 police commandos two years ago. In a resolution approved Monday, September 11, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales rejected Aquino’s motion for…
The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) on Tuesday, September 12, has approved the implementation of Mega Manila Subway Project (MMSP) — the Philippines’ first subway and the soon-to-be longest mass railway transit. The estimated $7-billion (P358.25-billion) subway will run from Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City to FTI complex in Taguig City. With the new…
MANILA – The Senate Minority bloc on Tuesday, September 12 backed Senator Risa Hontiveros’ call for Philippine Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II to resign after he was “caught red-handed plotting” against her. Hontiveros, also a member of the Senate minority, earlier released a photo showing Aguirre urging a certain “Cong. Jing” in a text message…
MANILA – Senator Antonio Trillanes IV maintained that he has not done anything unparliamentary during the recent Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings, saying that he trusts in the “wisdom and good judgment” of his colleagues who will decide on the ethics complaint filed against him. In a radio interview, Trillanes insisted that it was Senator…
Both critics and supporters of late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos gathered outside Libingan ng mga Bayani (Heroes’ Cemetery) in Taguig city on Monday, September 11, for the centennial birth commemoration of the former dictator. Security personnel were deployed to maintain order in the area. The air was charged with tension, but there were no reported…
THE United States has donated P730 million ($14.3 million) for the ongoing relief operations and rehabilitation of Marawi City, according to U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim. In a press briefing on Tuesday, September 5, Kim announced that Washington will provide humanitarian aid to the victims of the besieged city in Mindanao through its…
The detained father of brothers Abdullah and Omar Maute, who led the attack on Marawi City, passed away on Sunday, August 27, according to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP). BJMP spokesperson and Senior Insp. Xavier Solda said Cayamora Maute, 67, died past 3:00 p.m. in a government hospital after his blood pressure…
Fil-Am leaders renew call for TPS WHEN super typhoon Haiyan—or locally known as Yolanda—struck the Philippines on Nov. 8, 2013, it left devastating consequences that continue to plague the country even after a year had passed. More than 6,000 people were killed, about 30,000 were injured and more than 4 million were displaced in Tacloban…
