Smart football on EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 08/09/2011

Smart football on

EDITORIAL

Click to enlarge

08/09/2011
The case of Benjamin Pinpin, the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) lawyer who took his own life, is worthy of an Alfred Hitchcock mystery thriller as new and strange twists happen almost everyday and personalities involved could lead to the very doorsteps of the seat of power.

Available facts from people in the know who understandably want to remain anonymous related that trouble started to percolate at the state-owned bank when DBP chairman Jose Nuñez took office. Nuñez appears to be a pawn of Buddy Zamora who in turn is becoming the most prominent of Noynoy’s associates in business.

Zamora was a major campaign financier of Noynoy and was rumored to be Noynoy’s benefactor of his most prized toy, the Porsche, that he supposedly only recently sold.

Zamora, who is into heavy industries, including Philphos — a major maker of fertilizer — and Nonoc mining, apparently owed the DBP P3 billion upon the assumption of Nuñez. To pay off the maturing loans, Zamora supposedly applied for new loans with the same bank..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com1.html

Sneaky Noynoy FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 08/09/2011

Sneaky Noynoy

FRONTLINE

Ninez Cacho-Olivares

08/09/2011
Bits and pieces regarding the discussions of the secret meeting that obviously has resulted in a secret deal with Noynoy giving in to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s demands are now being gathered, with the MILF, through vice chairman Ghazali Jaafar, being quoted as saying a day after the Tokyo secret meeting between Noynoy and MILF chairman Al-Haj Murad, that the MILF does not want autonomy, which is “inutile,” but a substate, which is a state within a state.

Jaafar explained what a substate is, saying that under a sub-state, Mindanao Muslims would have control over major aspects of governance, except national defense, foreign affairs, currency and coinage, as well as postal services.

What is not being stated and explained, however by Jaafar and Noynoy, is that under the MILF substate terms, this Bangsa Moro government, which, as the MILF is going to be given by Noynoy its “national identity,” will be fairly a copy of the Palestinian Authority (PA), a substate lodged somewhere in Israeli-controlled territory.

The Oslo Accords afforded the Palestinian Authority control over both security-related and civilian issues in Palestinian urban areas and only civilian control over Palestinian rural areas. The remainder of the territories, including Israeli settlements remain under exclusive Israeli control. The PA has police control within the territories that have been included..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com2.html

Madonna’s Malawian school a barren field of failed dreams FEATURE 08/09/2011

Madonna’s Malawian school a barren field of failed dreams

FEATURE

08/09/2011
CHINKOTA — The abandoned site looks more like a quarried mine than a pop superstar’s multimillion-dollar dream to groom girls into Malawi’s next leaders and doctors.

But the bleak, levelled terraces of gravelly sand near Malawi’s capital are the only evidence of Madonna’s $15 million (10.6 million euros) academy that was ditched in a cloud over misused funds and disgruntled locals.

“This has just become a football ground now,” said local chief Binson Kalenga.

The bulldozers are long silent where Madonna — who adopted two children from Malawi — laid a foundation stone engraved “dare to dream” in April 2010, in a simple village in a desperately poor African country that many could not find on a map..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com3.html

Bad experience in Rome NO HOLDS BARRED Armida Siguion-Reyna 08/09/2011

Bad experience in Rome

NO HOLDS BARRED

Armida Siguion-Reyna

08/09/2011
The cause célèbre I shall of course get involved with, for to my last breath I shall be involved with all that’s got to do with freedom of expression, and no one, no priest, no group of priests, no threat of ex-communication, can stop me. No, sir, not even at my age.

But first, indulge me. I’m not merely complaining here, but actually issuing a warning to those setting out to vacation in Rome, where one is supposed to gather receipts for items that cost beyond 155 to 170 euros, in order to avail of at least an 11 percent value added tax (VAT) exemption.

Glad that the Italian Embassy here in Manila gave me a SchenGen visa for one year, I left for Rome July 14, so as to do away with jet lag before the official July 18 start of our “eating” tour to Florence and its environs. The boutique hotel we were in was snug and comfy, the one downer was not having my husband with me for the first time.

Sig and I both loved Italy, for its food, glorious music, wondrous works of art, and scenic spots. We’d been there countless of times, so I wanted to reconnect, and again went with a group comprised of my children Monique, Dodie and Luz, Carlitos and Bibeth, grandchildren Dara Tere, Tonito, Aya and Rafa; my sister Irma Potenciano and her daughter Virma, Virma’s husband Bonnie Vergel de Dios, and their son Mark; Lirio Vital, her two sons Roland and Chris; and Menggie Cobarrubias..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com4.html

No Pinoys hurt AN OUTSIDERS VIEW Ken Fuller 08/09/2011

No Pinoys hurt

AN OUTSIDERS VIEW

Ken Fuller

08/09/2011
For some time, I have been tempted to comment on the Philippine media’s habit of focusing on the number of Filipinos hurt or killed (often none) in foreign disasters, whether natural or man-made. To a degree, this practice is understandable, given the fact that Filipinos are to be found in most countries of the world. But it’s always struck me as somewhat unhealthy, conveying the impression of a compassion, to the extent that such exists, that is narrow and selfish, assigning secondary importance to the victims who are not Filipino — even if that’s all of them.

On Friday, July 22, scores of people were killed as a result of a bomb blast, followed by the lone rampage of a gunman in Norway. What was the Philippine Star’s headline on July 24? “No Pinoys hurt in Norway attacks.”

You don’t need to be a foreigner to find that offensive. Several online commentators took issue with it, one pointing out that the “attack was on Norwegian people by a Norwegian,” and therefore asking “why all this talk about Filipinos in Norway?” Another found that the article conveyed a “typical Pinoy and parochial perspective.” Why should readers’ first interest be “to know whether there are Pinoys involved? Victims of tragedy belong to common humanity…” More bluntly, a third asserted that the report merely proved that “Pinoys only care about other Pinoys,” not that “there are 91 people dead who are not Filipinos.”.... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com5.html

The czar of disaster INSIDE CONGRESS Charlie Manalo 08/09/2011

The czar of disaster

INSIDE CONGRESS

Charlie Manalo

08/09/2011
Over the weekend, an eager-beaver lawmaker called on President Noynoy Aquino to assume the role of disaster management czar.

While acknowledging the fact that the law, Republic Act 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, categorically names the Defense secretary as chairman of the National Disk Reduction and Management Council, this lawmaker claims the key and decisive disaster management player is the President.

As the take-charge guy in every calamitous situation, the disaster management czar, the lawmaker said, will have to address four major areas: disaster preparedness, disaster mitigation, emergency response, and post-disaster rehabilitation of victims.

He then called on Congress to look into the possibility of providing the President with additional powers to become the disaster management czar, particularly post-disaster rehabilitation of victims, which is considered crucial in disaster management..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com6.html

Deregulation VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 08/09/2011

Deregulation

VIEWPOINTS

Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz

08/09/2011
More often than not, the meaning and implications of the word “deregulation” bring to mind not only a good amount of happy thoughts but also uncertain feelings among the general public. It ushers in not merely the joyful expectation of freedom from law but also the horrible feelings of exploitation from avaricious and voracious individuals and companies.


Reason: The idea of “regulation” sounds offensive to human rights and dignity. On the other hand, the thought of “deregulation” makes the heart beat faster while the mind becomes fanciful. In other words, especially during these times when the laws of the land are only applicable to the poor while the rich are above the rules of social norms — the absence of regulatory provisions appears not only welcome but also very inspiring.

Specifically in the Philippines, a concrete example comes to mind: The reality of the regulation of salaries on one hand, and the deregulation of fuel on the other hand. The common people perfectly know and feel the contradiction in this practice of rather long observance in the country. While the government carefully and even grudgingly counts every peso added to the salaries of workers and employees in the private sector, it however plays practically deaf, blind and dumb when the different fuel corporations decidedly and repeatedly raise their respective selling prices — lowering these a little now and then in order to confuse their buyers, not really to lessen their financial burden..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110809com7.html

Noy, MILF dead set on setting Muslim substate By Mario J. Mallari 08/09/2011

TALKS OF CONGRESSIONAL ACTION FOR BANGSA MORO STATE PLEBISCITE

Noy, MILF dead set on setting Muslim substate

By Mario J. Mallari 08/09/2011

President Aquino and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are dead set on establishing for the MILF a Bangsa Moro substate with great government power and authority and wants this approved through a congressional act to provide his still secret deal with the Moro rebels the cloak of legality and “constitutionality.”

In a press briefing yesterday after the 110th service anniversary of the Philippine National Police at Camp Crame, Aquino refused to disclose details of the secret meeting with MILF chairman Al Haj
Murad held last Thursday in Tokyo, although it could be gleaned that he would be seeking congressional approval for the secret deal forged with the rebel Muslim group, which could lead to an expansion or contraction of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, saying that a plebsicite will be called to get the people to decide on whether they agree to an expanded, or contracted ARMM.

The MILF has made it clear that it wants a substate with the Bangsa Moro people having a national identity, which could well be the secret deal forged with Aquino, and this will likely result in an entity called the Bangsa Moro Authority, patterned after the Palestinian Authority that currently governs in Israeli-controlled territory..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110809hed1.html

Disbarment case filed against Davao mayor 08/09/2011

Disbarment case filed against Davao mayor

08/09/2011
A sheriffs group yesterday filed before the Supreme Court (SC) a disbarment case against Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, a lawyer.

In a five-page complaint-affidavit for disbarment, the Sheriffs Confederation of the Philippines (Scophil) led by Patermoscio Labayani, Roberto Galing and Fernando Regino asked the high tribunal to oust Duterte as lawyer for assaulting Davao City Court

Sheriff Abe Andres while acting on lawful orders from the court for demolition of houses in Davao City.

The group said Duterte-Carpio is not an ordinary mayor, she is a lawyer and an eminent member of the bar, hence, “she is an officer of the court.”.... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110809hed5.html

Tagoloan mayor to file charges vs Hanjin Co. at DoJ 08/09/2011

Tagoloan mayor to file charges vs Hanjin Co. at DoJ

08/09/2011
The complainants led by Tagoloan Mayor Mighty Dimakuta will file charges against Hanjin Construction Co. at Department of Justice (DoJ)  for violating the contract forged between the company and Lanao del Norte provincial government that the former should maintain the three road projects of the province for at least one year after completion.

At the same time, Dimakuta will ask the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to deport the officers or leaders, including all personnel (Koreans) to South Korea as they become undesirable aliens in the country.

Landslides and flooding in Tagoloan prompted Dimakuta to seek legal assistance and impose disciplinary action against the leaders, officers and personnel of Hanjin to instill lesson that they cannot just take it lightly their responsibility of their duty and function as foreigner contractor in the country.

“The Hanjin leaders or officers must be serious in their dealings with the local residents or provincial leaders particularly about forged contract they signed as every provision or agreement stated in the contract should be complied,” Dimakuta said..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20110809nat3.html

Elite AFP troops kill 3 Abu Sayyaf terrorists in clash By Mario J. Mallari 08/09/2011

Elite AFP troops kill 3 Abu Sayyaf terrorists in clash

By Mario J. Mallari 08/09/2011

At least three Abu Sayyaf terrorists were killed after government troops last Sunday caught up with the band of Radullan Sahiron and Isnilon Hapilon which perpetrated the killing of seven Marines, five of them beheaded, last week in the outskirts of Sulu province.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) deputy chief of staff for operations (J3) Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr. said that the successful military operation was launched by combined Marines and elite Army forces along the vicinities of Barangay Bungkaong in Patikul town around 8:45 a.m.

Mabanta said that combined elements of the Army’s 3rd Light Reaction Company (LRC), 63rd Force reconnaissance Company (FRC) and the Marines clashed with more or less 40 to 50 Abu Sayyaf bandits. The firefight lasted for about 30 minutes..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20110809nat1.html

Magsaysay, Carandang showdown looms By Charlie V. Manalo 08/09/2011

Magsaysay, Carandang showdown looms

By Charlie V. Manalo 08/09/2011

A showdown looms today at the House of Representatives as Zambales Rep. Ma. Milagros “Mitos” Magsaysay gets the chance to confront Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) Secretary Ricky Carandang over the issue of the alleged overpriced purchase of Apple computers the latter had acquired without a public bidding.

In a privilege speech, Magsaysay said Carandang has a lot of explaining to do regarding the unsavory remarks uttered by the Cabinet secretary against the solon when they meet in today’s budget hearing for Presidential Communications Operation Office (PCOO) budget. The PCDSPO is under the PCOO.

“Magpaliwanag na lang siya sa budget hearing,” Magsaysay exclaimed in relation to Carandang’s attack against her.

Last week, Carandang accused Magsaysay feeding to the media wrong information regarding his office’s purchase of 24 units of Apple laptop computers, alleging the solon of spreading rumors he tried to force his assistant secretary to sign a purchase order even without the benefit of a proper bidding..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20110809met1.html

CCP officials should resign over sacrilegious’ exhibit — lawmaker By Charlie V. Manalo and Gerry Baldo 08/09/2011

CCP officials should resign over sacrilegious’ exhibit — lawmaker

By Charlie V. Manalo and Gerry Baldo 08/09/2011
Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing yesterday called on the officials of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) to immediately tender their resignations for refusing to shut down an “offensive, sacrilegious and blasphemous” art exhibit.

“CCP’s showcasing of the exhibit, especially Mideo M. Cruz’s ‘Polytheism,’ is a misuse of public funds and government facilities for which CCP officials can be and should be made to answer for,” said Bagatsing in a privilege speech.

“Heads must roll over this affront to humanity masquerading as art, especially since CCP officials have stubbornly refused to close the curtains on this exhibit using their mistaken notion of freedom of expression.”

Bagatsing also called on the Dominican leadership of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) to issue an emphatic condemnation of the exhibit because while it is not an official activity of UST’s Quadricentennial Celebration, it is being held in conjunction with the school’s 400th anniversary..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20110809met3.html

The traitor class DIE HARD III Herman Tiu Laurel 08/08/2011

The traitor class

DIE HARD III

Herman Tiu Laurel

08/08/2011
Early last week, I predicted the creation of a “substate” in Mindanao this September under the auspices of the present government to accommodate the US’ little surrogates in that part of the country, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). I explained to my three friends, noted “sons of Mindanao,” the oft-repeated pattern of attacks on government military units preceding all attempts at a US-imposed solution to the Mindanao territorial problem. At the same time, I informed them that rumors of a September substate implementation in fact emanate from circles within the government “peace panel.”

Since few still understand what a “substate” really means, I explained by way of a statement from the Independent International Commission on Kosovo (IICK): “The classic 19th century concept of sovereignty, even if it rarely pertained in practice, was a concept of absolute territorial sovereignty. In the 21st century, sovereignty is necessarily shared and dependent on agreements with a range of international actors.”

In that report, the concept of “earned sovereignty” was mentioned as integral to the substate, which unambiguously means eventual independence. It said, “Earned sovereignty is achieved… (whereby) the state and substate entity may both exercise sovereign authority and functions over a defined territory.” Moreover, “international institutions may also exercise sovereign authority and functions in addition to or in lieu of the parent state.”

Then, it gets more interesting: “The second core element is institution-building… Here the substate entity, frequently with the assistance of the international community, undertakes to construct institutions for self-government (while)… The third… is the eventual determination of the final status of the substate entity.”

And here’s the clincher: “In many instances the status will be determined by a referendum, while in others it may involve a negotiated settlement… Invariably, the determination of final status for the substate entity involves the consent of The International community … (emphasis mine)”

Since Kosovo is a prime example, then we should know that such a framework is no solution to the problem, given what we can see happening there today.

Kosovo, which is 92 percent Albanian and 8 percent other minorities (including ethnic Serbs), was radically destabilized in the early 1990s when it was still under Serbia’s moderate autonomous Rugova government. Back then, the US sponsored the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which led a campaign of terror against the Serbs; thus, provoking the ultra-nationalists. The resulting internal strife subsequently provided the US the perfect excuse for a UN peacekeeping force.

Kosovo was thereafter pried apart from Serbia in 1999 after three months of the US’ bombing of Belgrade. The KLA eventually assumed leadership in Kosovo government, but is today under investigation by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for many atrocities.

In early January, PACE voted to support a report by Swiss MP Dick Marty that alleged “a criminal network tied to the Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA (which) executed prisoners and harvested their kidneys to sell for illicit organ transplant” (with) Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci as head of the operation.

Former International Criminal Court (ICC) Milosevic prosecutor Carla del Ponte at that time was also investigating Thaci until the US pressured for her removal.

However, despite the sordid background of the US’ allies in Kosovo, it declared independence in 2008, over the objections of Serbia, Russia, China, Spain and many other countries.

That will also be the eventual fate of the MILF substate. And the promise of a long-lasting peace is nothing but an illusion.

Just two weeks ago, July 26, BBC reported: “Kosovo police forces of the ‘substate’ of Serbia, Kosovo, made a ‘bid to take over two border crossing in the ethnic Serb north’… Kosovo police units, who came under fire, pulled back after Serbs refusing to recognize their authority took up arms and mounted roadblocks. Nato-led peacekeepers moved into the area to calm the situation. The US and EU criticized the Kosovan government for acting without consulting international bodies. The whole episode shows just how problematic the north of Kosovo remains.”

The UN peacekeepers intervened to keep the two sides apart and both economies continue to suffer. The end result of the substate concept and political arrangement is that where there was once a relatively genuine sovereign state, two puppet states emerge. As with Serbia and Kosovo, both puppet states today, the Republic of the Philippines will be diminished and the MILF will rise as a rival in the area so that both will be kept by foreign powers in constant conflict.

The new diminished Philippine Republic and the new substate of the MILF are all thanks to the “great patriotic peacemaking efforts” of the Cojuangco-Aquino clan, which has always led in creating “better conditions” for national dignity and sovereignty — from the oath of allegiance of Benigno S. Aquino Sr. and Aurora Aquino, grandparents of BSA III, to the Japanese conquerors; to Ninoy Aquino’s exposé of the Jabidah project to retake Sabah; to Corazon Aquino’s ceding of Sabah to Malaysia; and now, the new MILF substate.

We owe all these to the Cojuangco-Aquinos who are now riding the bandwagon of oil and natural gas having attended the MILF-PeNoy Tokyo talks, sharing the bonanza with J. Robinson West, chairman of PFC Energy and US Institute for Peace.

Such is the traitor class that the US has entrenched into power through various means, such as Hocus PCOS—the reason BSA III is only too willing to oblige lest he find himself soon in the same position as Gloria Arroyo today.

While this is happening, other treasonous rats also play — from the CodeNGO et al. gobbling up the P4-billion administrative cost of the Conditional Cash Transfer; to Purisima, Tentangco et al. wallowing in the fruits of RP surplus investments in their foreign investement partners. Truly, for as long as this traitor class remains in power, there is no hope for this nation.

(Tune in to Radyo OpinYon, Monday to Friday, 5 to 6 p.m., and Sulo ng Pilipino, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 6 to 7 p.m. on 1098AM; Talk News TV with HTL, on “Mis-Rule of Law: From Edsa Dos to MILF Substate,” with Atty. Alan Paguia and Sen. Koko Pimentel, Saturday, 8 to 9 p.m., with replay at 11 p.m., on GNN, Destiny Cable Channel 8; visit http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com and http://hermantiulaurel.blogspot.com for our articles plus TV and radio archives)

(Reprinted with permission from Mr. Herman Tiu-Laurel)

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110808com5.html

Noy gets a new umbrella EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 08/08/2011

Noy gets a new umbrella

EDITORIAL

Click to enlarge

08/08/2011
Worried questions were raised over the likely ripple effects of the unprecedented credit rating downgrade on the United States by Standard and Poor’s (S&P) the other day, one of three globally-recognized credit watchdogs, the other two being Moody’s and Fitch.

Even in the United States, the anticipation is high on how Asia, the first region in the world that will translate the US ratings cut into actual market movements, will react today.

Calls were also made, including that of Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima for the financial world to consider an alternative international currency to the US dollar, which has lost its stability as a result of the current financial and now political turmoil, as a result of the vicious debate on debt ceilings, in the world’s biggest economy.

Noynoy, in turn, was immediately in the news supposedly “scrambling” his economic officials to prepare for the impact of the credit downgrade. S&P’s downgrade, while unprecedented, has been a long time in coming. The US economy appears to have yet to rise from the 2007 financial turmoil and its consequent effect of a global crisis that hit most of the big European economies..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110808com1.html

Giving the MILF what it wants FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 08/08/2011

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Impact of US downgrade uncertain FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 08/08/2011

Impact of US downgrade uncertain

FRONTLINE

Ninez Cacho-Olivares

08/08/2011
WASHINGTON — Given the size of the US economy and the preeminent role of the dollar worldwide, the cut to Washington’s credit rating ought to spill over throughout the global economy.

But for the same reason — that the dollar and US debt are so widely held and relied on in finance and trade — many analysts think the impact will not be too heavy, at least in the short run.

Standard & Poor’s cut the US’s top-rank triple-A rating down a notch, to AA+, for the first time ever on Friday, technically signaling that the country’s reliability for paying its debts had decreased.

S&P rejected Washington’s efforts to demonstrate it had embarked on a clear path to slash the country’s deficit and reduce its debt load..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110808com3.html

Treason C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz 08/08/2011

Treason

C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S

Jonathan De la Cruz

08/08/2011
So, what negotiations, peace or otherwise, did Marvic Leonen “plagiarize” this time around? This was the question asked of the legal experts in our regular Saturday Forum at Annabel’s after our media friends decried what they thought was the treasonous act of GRP Negotiating Panel Chief Leonen of bringing P-Noy to a face-to-face “unofficial” meeting with MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad in Tokyo last Thursday. They were particularly incensed by Leonen’s confused and tangled pronouncements about this so-called “out-of-the-box” move as he triumphantly announced to one and all that the “secret trip” was a success. To most experts this move was not only ill advised but out and out treason and Leonen and his immediate boss, OPAPP Chief Ging Deles should be raked over the coals for it.

It is putting the cart before the horse. And no matter how good or noble the intentions are, the implications for the country, here and abroad, are certainly dire and risky. Taken in the context of international diplomacy and developments, it is just like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meeting with the Hamas chief before any peace deal is finalized and the latter officially presents documents abrogating their group’s vow to “extinguish” the State of Israel. Or, the Irish Republic’s President meeting with the Sinn Fein central committee even before the signing of the “Black Friday’” agreement. That’s a no-no under any circumstance especially since the MILF remains an armed political group determined in setting up its own state out the predominantly Muslim provinces in Mindanao and Palawan..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110808com4.html

Ongpin blames lawyer’s suicide on DBP head 08/08/2011

FORMER TRADE CHIEF SAYS CASE FILED BY NUñEZ A DIVERSION

Ongpin blames lawyer’s suicide on DBP head

08/08/2011
Former Trade Minister Roberto Ongpin broke his silence yesterday over the criminal complaint the state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) filed against him and 25 bank officials as he placed squarely on newly appointed DBP chairman Jose Nuñez the responsibility on the suicide of DBP lawyer Benjamin Pinpin who he said took his life due to pressures applied on him by Nuñez. Pinpin was laid to rest Saturday and a high-ranking DBP official asked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to step into the supposed suicide case.

Pinpin was among DBP officials tasked to investigate the DBP transactions that tooke place during the Arroyo administration.

DBP chief legal counsel Benilda Tejada personally went to the office of the NBI last Friday to submit documents which were left by Pinpin who supposedly commited suicide on Aug. 2 in a comfort room of a hotel in Las Piñas City.

According to Tejada, they are requesting the help of the NBI in investigating the death of Pinpin despite the existence of a suicide note..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110808hed1.html

Fate of abducted Surigao mayor still uncertain; one more soldier dies in NPA ambush 08/08/2011

Fate of abducted Surigao mayor still uncertain; one more soldier dies in NPA ambush

08/08/2011
Government authorities have not heard from the communist-abductors of a Surigao del Sur town mayor even as intensified pursuit and rescue operations by the military are continuing.

Surigao del Sur Gov. Johnny Pimentel, who also heads the provincial crisis management committee, said while they have suspects on what particular group of the New People’s Army (NPA) was responsible in the kidnapping of Lingig Mayor Henry Dano, no contact has been made yet with the kidnappers or the town executive himself.

“Up to this moment, we have no contact yet with the kidnappers of Mayor Henry Dano and himself,” he added.

Pimentel, however, said pursuit operations by the military are now ongoing..... MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110808hed4.html