After the chartered Lear jet carrying Rodrigo Duterte finally took off from Manila late Tuesday night for The Hague in the Netherlands, a former senator and a human rights lawyer predicted that his departure would be for good. In The Hague, the 79-year-old former president will face charges of crimes against humanity before the International...
Category: News
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Rodrigo Duterte arrested after arriving in Manila from Hong Kong
Former president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested and is now in police custody soon after he arrived in Manila from Hong Kong on Tuesday morning in connection with an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and served by the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol). Duterte is charged with crimes against humanity at the...
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In this scorching weather, what does ‘heat index’ mean?
PILI, Camarines Sur — As the temperature soars, with many parts of the country including Metro Manila experiencing extremely warm weather, the term “heat index” has surfaced anew. In its March 6 advisory, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) warned of “danger” as the heat index rose to 45⁰ C in Dagupan City...
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Presidential spokespersons should ‘fight fire with fire,’ says Pnoy’s ex-spox Edwin Lacierda
These are challenging times for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s communications team as it fights fake news and troll armies hounding the administration even more intensely now, according to Edwin Lacierda, spokesperson of the late former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. “They have their work cut out for them,” Lacierda said of the President’s communicators in...
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The Coast Guard’s Tarriela explains how the Philippines can win over China in the battle of narratives
Of all the disinformation thrown Commodore Jay Tarriela’s way, nothing has annoyed him more than this: that he’s a CIA agent. That insidious jab—thrown by a troll on social media soon after the Philippine Coast Guard officer completed his fellowship in Washington, D.C. in 2023—still stings to this day. “For me personally, I think the...
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Genuine reform still nowhere 39 years after Edsa, says ex-detainee Judy Taguiwalo
There were many ways to silence democracy during the martial rule of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos Sr.: Immobilize someone on a bench and pour water continuously on their face until they confess to their “crime” or reveal their comrades’ whereabouts; monopolize the media; or, during a house raid, shoot an activist dead and employ...
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Shear line, the bearer of rains, explained
The shear line has been dominating national and local weather reports in recent days as the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) predicts rainfall, thunderstorms, flooding, and even landslides in various parts of the country. In a forecast report released at 4 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 20, Pagasa said the shear line could...
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This is the state of the party list system
Does the name James Christopher Napoles ring a bell? The son and co-accused of the pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles is the No. 1 nominee of Kaunlad Pinoy, one among 156 party list groups vying for seats in the House of Representatives in the May 12 elections. House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s son Andrew...
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Even before campaign period, TV, radio ads of candidates exceeded P10B before discounts
Candidates in the May elections aired television and radio ads worth over P10 billion before discounts from January to December 2024, based on newly released data from Nielsen Ad Intel. Only four senatorial candidates accounted for 60% of the total amount, raising concerns among electoral reform advocates about the advantage wealthy and well-connected candidates have...
Bago City Payag Sang Kapag-on Village —PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF CIVIL DEFENSE WESTERN VISAYAS
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Kanlaon evacuees will now shelter in ‘bahay kubo’
Bago City in Negros Occidental is completing a new project: a village of 50 huts—or bahay kubo—to serve as temporary shelters for families displaced by the eruptive behavior of Kanlaon Volcano. Ryan Valero, the operations and warning head of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, said that compared to a tent, the regular shelter...