The Senate voted on Wednesday night to archive the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte, “killing” it before it could reach trial and weakening accountability mechanisms for public officials, a law expert warned. Voting 19-4 with one abstention, the Senate agreed on the amended motion of Sen. Rodante Marcoleta to archive the articles of...
Category: News
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Inside the once-bustling Pogo hub in Bamban, everything is covered in dust
BAMBAN, Tarlac—The once-bustling Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub in this second-class town 100 kilometers from Manila is now eerily quiet. The 10-hectare Baofu compound just behind the municipal hall is a haunting reminder of a criminal enterprise that thrived under the watch of then Mayor Alice Guo, also known as Guo Hua...
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Transitional justice: Moving forward from Rodrigo Duterte is a ‘national responsibility’
With Rodrigo Duterte detained in The Hague for nearly five months, the public may now take the question seriously: What next? Even as we await the arrest of other persons involved in Duterte’s “war on drugs,” surely there is a task that ordinary Filipinos can take on, for the “war” was not waged by only...
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Is the case of the missing ‘sabungeros’ nearing solution? Their kin and advocates hope for justice
Carmen Malaca’s son, Edgar, disappeared without a trace along with 33 other cockfight gamers (sabungeros) between April 2021 and January 2022. Like the other families still grieving, she is hopeful that recent developments will finally lead to justice for their loved ones. Speaking to CoverStory in Filipino, the mother described her son as “such a...
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Five things to watch out for in the 20th Congress
1. Vice President Sara Duterte’s trial: Will it finally happen? The next round of the Marcos-Duterte family feud was expected to play out in Congress. But the Dutertes scored a win—and the possibility of a reprieve until February 2026, or even longer—in Friday’s Supreme Court ruling that temporarily banned an impeachment trial. The Marcos-controlled House...
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Like many other areas nationwide, storm-battered Antique put under state of calamity
SAN JOSE, ANTIQUE—With many communities in this province staggering from heavy rain, flooding, and storm surges for more than a week, the provincial board declared a state of calamity during a special session held on July 25. The board passed Resolution No. 082-2025 (1) in response to the disastrous effects brought by the southwest monsoon...
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There’s ‘confusion’ about corporate intentions in idyllic Mariahangin, now a piece of valuable real estate
Nario, a fisherman and father to two young children, now patrols the beaches of Mariahangin Island at night, joining a vigil of volunteer families. Two years ago, he made a decision that would uproot his family from their ancestral home on this idyllic island in southern Palawan—a decision he has since come to regret. Like...
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Supreme Court strikes down impeachment complaint against VP Sara Duterte
The impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte may be dead in the water—for now. The Supreme Court has struck down the complaint as unconstitutional, saying it is barred by the one-year rule on the filing of multiple impeachment complaints. The justices unanimously ruled that the Senate has no jurisdiction over the impeachment complaint seeking...
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Sotto says he and Lacson will ensure no repeat of national budget ‘mangled in the Senate’
Whether they end up in the majority or minority bloc, Sen. Vicente Sotto III said, he and Sen. Panfilo Lacson will make sure that there will be no repeat of a “national budget” that was “mangled” last year in the Senate. The two lawmakers said they had been looking into irregularities in the ₱6.326-trillion national budget...
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Autonomy and the case of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed the General Appropriations Act for 2025 despite the contentious budget proceedings including protests over alleged blank portions in the document. The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives, particularly the Kabataan Partylist, reported budget cuts on state universities and colleges (SUCs), raising negative reactions. After all, the fiscal operations of...