The business of impeachment

The business of impeachment

FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/22/2010 It is all of course the Yellows and their anointed who have been talking about impeachment, as their inane way of putting the pressure on the Supreme Court (SC) for it to reverse its latest ruling vesting Gloria Arroyo with the power to appoint the next Chief Justice (CJ). Threatening to impeach the high court justices just isn’t going to work as a pressure point, and neither will the Yellow marches nor for that matter, the lawyers groups plugging for their anointed justice do the pressure trick. The irony of it all is that it was the yellows and their anointed justices who made it impossible for the Congress — even an independent one — to impeach any impeachable official, especially the high court justices. Recall the time when an impeachment complaint was lodged against then SC Chief Justice, the disgraceful Hilario Davide Jr., where the majority of House members.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com2.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL Fatwa is an endorsement FRONTLINE This business of impeachment ZOOMING IN The golden boys of gastroenterology II C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe DIE HARD III Edsa II Frankenstein monster HE SAYS Color blind SHE SAYS The heat is on

The golden boys of gastroenterology II

The golden boys of gastroenterology II

ZOOMING IN Rudy Romero 03/22/2010 This is not a column on medical science, but because of the very good reception that “The Golden Boys of Gastroenterology (March 17)” received, I have decided to do a follow-up column. The timing is perfect for a follow-up column on gastroenterology because this week will see the holding of the conventions of two societies whose members are involved in medical practice involving eight of the human body’s most important parts, namely, the liver, stomach, gall bladder, pancreas, large intestine, small intestine and rectum of an individual. The societies are the Philippine Society of Colorectal Surgeons (PSCRS) — its convention will be its first — and the Ostomy Association of the Philippines (OAP). A participant in those events will be the Enterostomal Therapy Nurses Association of the Philippines (ETNAP). Greater public awareness and treatment of gastroenterological diseases could be neither more important nor more timely. Cancer of the colon (large intestine) and rectum or colorectal cancer (CRC) has become the third most common cancer and cancer-death cause in the Philippines. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com3.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL Fatwa is an endorsement FRONTLINE This business of impeachment ZOOMING IN The golden boys of gastroenterology II C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe DIE HARD III Edsa II Frankenstein monster HE SAYS Color blind SHE SAYS The heat is on

Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe

Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe

C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz 03/22/2010 It  was Senate Minority Leader Nene Pimentel who advised at our Kapihan sa  Sulo forum sometime back that there can be no failure of elections under  the 1987 Charter and current election laws. The reason for this is  simple, according to the long term senator and veteran street  parliamentarian. Unlike in other countries where a  specific percentage of the registered voters, say a simple majority,  have to vote in order for the elections to be upheld and stamped okay,  ours does not have such a numerical requirement. So, let us say only 10  percent of registered voters did vote, that will not impede the  proclamation of a winner for as long as the candidate garners the most  number of votes. The Mindanao solon posited that.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE  URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com4.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL Fatwa  is an endorsement FRONTLINE This  business of impeachment ZOOMING  IN The  golden boys of gastroenterology II C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Poll  failure, no; No-proc, maybe DIE  HARD III Edsa  II Frankenstein monster HE  SAYS Color  blind SHE SAYS The heat is on

Color blind

Color blind

HE SAYS Aldrin Cardon 03/22/2010 I love summer fashion. The bright colors blend well with the minimal use of materials for clothing. They help in the preservation of things, and I am sure earth lovers would love it benefits. But earth lovers — not only the conservationists but scientists as well — have raised the alarm that these are not ordinary summers. The El Niño — the dry spell, is here to ruin the party, and we are experiencing quite an abnormal rise in temperature that lessens our chances of seeing girls in skimpy bikinis because they simply won’t go out, else they will be ruining their glutathioned skins, which they think make them pretty. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com6.html

OMMENTARY EDITORIAL Fatwa is an endorsement FRONTLINE This business of impeachment ZOOMING IN The golden boys of gastroenterology II C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe DIE HARD III Edsa II Frankenstein monster HE SAYS Color blind SHE SAYS The heat is on

The heat is on

The heat is on

SHE SAYS Dinah S. Ventura 03/22/2010 I often get asked, in line with my work in this paper, what’s hot or what’s new in many different aspects of life: What’s the latest trend, where is the best place to eat, what new places have opened, where to go for summer break, who are the people to watch, what are people talking about now and so on. It’s an interesting job, and I’m happy to get first dibs on information such as those mentioned above and being able to share them with others. But sometimes I feel people miss out on some of the more important issues that concern their lives just as much as they affect their lifestyles. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com7.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL Fatwa is an endorsement FRONTLINE This business of impeachment ZOOMING IN The golden boys of gastroenterology II C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Poll failure, no; No-proc, maybe DIE HARD III Edsa II Frankenstein monster HE SAYS Color blind SHE SAYS The heat is on

Despite ‘fatwa,’ Erap vows to end MILF reign By Gerry Baldo 03/21/2010

TO HEAD OFF POWER VACUUM SECESSIONIST MOVEMENT ROOT OF MINDANAO WOES  Despite ‘fatwa,’ Erap vows to end MILF reign By Gerry Baldo 03/21/2010 A supposed “fatwa” or religious decree against his presidential bid has not changed former President Joseph Estrada’s determination to eradicate the Muslim secessionist movement if elected on May 10, saying this is necessary to bring peace in Mindanao. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) endorsed a fatwa by a group of Muslim scholars in Mindanao island, the heartland of the large Islamic minority, ahead of the May elections. “After studying the actions and policies of Mr. Estrada before and after his election as president until this present time, we found out that he is really an enemy of Islam,” MILF quoted the Bangsamoro Supreme Council of Ulama as saying. Estrada, who was in a campaign swing in Cotabato City yesterday, said he is not an enemy of Islam and that the MILF is his only target since the group continues to spread mayhem in Mindanao, Estrada said. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100322hed1.html

HEADLINES Despite ‘fatwa,’ Erap vows to end MILF reign Palace downplays uprising claim Impeach case vs nine SC justices readied Gov’t retracts warning on junta No ‘credible’ gov’t action on massacre — Asia HR group MILF leader, mayor’s kin killed in Basilan

No ‘credible’ gov’t action on massacre — Asia HR group By Aytch de la Cruz 03/21/2010

No ‘credible’ gov’t action on massacre — Asia HR group

By Aytch de la Cruz 03/21/2010 A Hong Kong-based civil rights group which is regularly consulted by the United Nations (UN) criticized yesterday the government for the lack of credible action on bringing justice to the victims of the Maguindanao massacre that has the influential Ampatuan political clan, an ally of President Arroyo, as suspected perpetrator. “The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to highlight the lack of credible action by the government of the Philippines concerning the Nov. 23, 2009 massacre in Maguindanao in which 57 persons travelling to register a candidate in local elections were massacred by the private army of the ruling family which has ties to the President. Thirty journalists were killed in this massacre, the highest number ever killed in a single event,” it said during the 13th Session of the Human Rights Council at the UN.  ALRC said after the initial steps taken by the government, nearly four months later, there has been no substantial progress in the trial of the 197 accused, 62 of whom are policemen. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100321hed2.html

HEADLINES Despite ‘fatwa,’ Erap vows to end MILF reign Palace downplays uprising claim Impeach case vs nine SC justices readied Gov’t retracts warning on junta No ‘credible’ gov’t action on massacre — Asia HR group MILF leader, mayor’s kin killed in Basilan

Generals’ game EDITORIAL 03/21/2010

Generals’ game

EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 03/21/2010 The groundwork for Operation August Moon that is a self coup plan of Gloria and her favored generals, is in place and the Palace showed yesterday that it is now testing the waters for a public response after Gloria’s deputy spokesman Charito Planas floated the possibility of a military junta should the elections in May 10 fail. Nearly all the generals mentioned in a Tribune report way back the middle of last year when the lid was blown on the plan are right in strategic positions and the recently appointed chief of staff is now Gen. Delfin Bangit, a former head of the Presidential Security Group and a member of Gloria’s favored Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1978. Also there is Leandro Mendoza, Gloria’s fierce loyalist general, now positioned as Executive Secretary or what others prefer to call as the little president..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100322com1.html

COMMENTARY Generals’ game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

Clueless, flip-flopping candidate FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/21/2010

Clueless, flip-flopping candidate

FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/21/2010 From the statements he utters on several positions taken, it really looks like Noynoy Aquino has no understanding of how things work in government. Of course, when it comes to flip-flopping political statements, Noynoy is proving to one and all just how much of a political opportunist or the trapo he derides, he has become. It will be recalled that Noynoy, immediately upon accepting the Liberal Party’s standard bearership, said he will be going after Marcos and his ill-gotten wealth, and as the days went by, tossed some more anti-Marcos spiels, such as still wanting to get to the bottom of his father’s murder and the brains behind the slaying, which everyone knows, he and the Aquino clan believe it to be Marcos. These days however, he has been directing all his attacks at Gloria Arroyo, vowing to create a commission — not unlike his mother’s failed Presidential Commission on Good Government, where commissions were good to the commissioners, all of whom appear to have gotten wealthy on the job..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com2.html

COMMENTARY Generals’ game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

Remembering Emi Boncodin ENQUIRY Demaree J. B. Raval 03/21/2010

Remembering Emi Boncodin

ENQUIRY Demaree J. B. Raval 03/21/2010 On a fine day in September 2006 — I had just shepherded the Kabul Declaration Against Corruption at a conference held at the Serena Hotel, and was about to leave for my UN quarters — I heard a familiar voice asking the hotel concierge what rooms were available and how much they cost. The gravelly yet sing-song inflections took me back in time to my Senate and UP days, and I was very sure to whom it belonged. And true enough, it was Emi, a.k.a. former Budget Secretary Emilia Boncodin. What was a very fragile Bikolana like her doing in war-torn Afghanistan? She told me she had come as a consultant to the Afghan Ministry of Finance in the preparation of the national budget. Emi stayed at the hotel only for two days, preferring to stay at the more frugal quarters for consultants. She did save a lot in changing residence, and took pride in being able to spend her savings buying a rare indulgence for an austere woman like her: a hand-spun cashmere shawl — the famous pashmina. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com3.html

COMMENTARY Generals’ game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

Gibo in the end? BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta 03/21/2010

Gibo in the end? BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta 03/21/2010 There is a lesson to be learned regarding President Arroyo’s unexpected scuttling of the $100-million (or around P2.5 billion) “midnight deal” that was being hatched by certain bright fellows in the Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) — share the sunshine. As the Big Bird character said during one of the episodes of the iconic Sesame Street television show catering to toddlers and young kids that was totally big in the 1970s, what this means is simply don’t be greedy. Well, lust or the all-consuming desire for money is what probably led to Arroyo’s termination of the plan of certain CIAC officials to award to the Kuwaiti firm Al Mal Consortium the multi-year contract to develop and manage a world-class passenger terminal at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) situated right inside the Clark Freeport. .... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com4.html

COMMENTARY Generals’ game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

A damning dilemma TABLETS OF STONE Larry Faraon, OP 03/21/2010

A damning dilemma

TABLETS OF STONE

Larry Faraon, OP

03/21/2010

This is a country where choices are always favors. And within the context of this country’s mired and wounded political praxis, it becomes a root cause of corruption since such choices become invoices for political ploys or strategies for some other bigger favors.

For instance, for the critics and detractors of the GMA administration, the appointment of the new Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on the eve of a major electoral exercise would fall into that category of “strategic choice” which may put this country’s political future into deeper peril and mess.

But the issue presents a dilemma; a damning one. On the one hand, there is the realistic apprehension that in the event of an election failure and deadlock, the Supreme Court which acts as the final arbiter in election contentions and conflicts would find it difficult to wrest from the web of “utang na loob” in making its decision, especially when practically all of them are appointees of Gloria Arroyo whose political stakes are as clear as day. The fear is real and that reality is threatening the only democratic right of the every citizen in this country especially the poor, whose voices are heard through their silent choices...MORE

Source:  The Daily Tribune

ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com5.html

The curse of injustice in the land VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 03/21/2010

The curse of injustice in the land VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz  03/21/2010 A curse is definitely not something to be taken lightly nor gingerly, calmly and nonchalantly. A damnation or malediction, a scourge or tribulation, a torment or plague — this is a curse. It basically means an odious situation eventually leading to a heinous and odious destiny. And applied to a country calamity or a social catastrophe. Injustice is a tightly suffocating tyranny of inequality and iniquity, a disgusting and revolting rule of lawlessness and iniquity. It is the eradication of what is right and just. Thus comes to fore the suffocating reign of the unethical, the unfair, the unjust — be these individual, families or group of persons with the following detestable behavioral pattern: They steal without remorse, rob without limit. They take and keep what is not theirs. They are the law as they are way up above the law..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com6.html

COMMENTARY Generals’ game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

Cashing in on cutting carbon at home FEATURE 03/21/2010

Cashing in on cutting carbon at home FEATURE 03/21/2010 CHICAGO — Can the promise of a free cupcake or some cold hard cash work better than dire predictions of dying polar bears and rising sea levels at getting people to cut their carbon footprint? Two US-based startup companies certainly hope so. Energy brokers in White Plaines, New York have launched what they hope will be a global exchange platform for selling carbon offset credits based on cutting home energy use. They sold the first credit in January for $21.50 — yielding a $4.30 brokerage fee — and expect to sell the second in the coming weeks..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100321com7.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL’ General's game FRONTLINE Clueless, flip-flopping candidate ENQUIRY Remembering Emi Boncodin BLURBAL THRUSTS Gibo in the end? TABLETS OF STONE A damning dilemma VIEWPOINTS The curse of injustice in the land FEATURE Cashing in on cutting carbon at home

Palace hints at junta gov’t with failed polls By Aytch S. de la Cruz 03/20/2010

‘Chaotic situation to compel military to take over’  Palace hints at junta gov’t with failed polls By Aytch S. de la Cruz 03/20/2010 Malacañang yesterday strongly hinted at a military takeover with the establishment of a junta government should there be a massive failure of automated elections scheduled in May 2010. Deputy spokesman Charito Planas indicated the possibility of the creation of a military junta arising from a massive failure of elections which could take place if the Commission on Elections (Comelec) falls short on its preparations for the May polls owing to various elements deemed contributory to such fears. Planas said by virtue of the 1987 Constitution, a chaotic situation may force the military to take over the government in the event of a failure of the nation to elect a new set of leaders in May...... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune Alternative URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100320hed1.html

HEADLINES Palace hints at junta gov’t with failed polls Noynoy vows to have GMA-blessed CJ impeached ‘JEEP Ni Erap’ vows to deliver .5M votes Appoint next CJ, risk military uprising,  Arroyo warned Chiz wants Comelec’s 3 ‘undersized’ cargo forwarders checked out Amlac should probe Duterte’s bank account --- Gloria aide

‘JEEP Ni Erap’ vows to deliver .5M votes 03/20/2010

‘JEEP Ni Erap’ vows to deliver .5M votes 03/20/2010 The campaign of former President Joseph Estrada got a big boost as more than 150 leaders of “JEEP Ni Erap,” a grassroots-based citizen’s movement for “justice, economy, environment and peace,” gathered yesterday in Greenhills, San Juan City to reiterate their commitment to the standard-bearer of the Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP). According to JEEP chairman Horacio Morales, at least 150 leaders of their group and 500,000 of their members have expressed their support to Estrada’s presidential bid. “JEEP Ni Erap” was greatly responsible for Estrada’s victory in 1998. Morales said Estrada could get 30 percent of the vote if the 6-percent increase in the surveys continues..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph//headlines/20100320hed3.html

HEADLINES Palace hints at junta gov’t with failed polls Noynoy vows to have GMA-blessed CJ impeached ‘JEEP Ni Erap’ vows to deliver .5M votes Appoint next CJ, risk military uprising,  Arroyo warned Chiz wants Comelec’s 3 ‘undersized’ cargo forwarders checked out Amlac should probe Duterte’s bank account --- Gloria aide

The real score EDITORIAL 03/20/2010

The real score

EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 03/20/2010 If those who protest against the Supreme Court ruling saying that the incumbent can appoint the new Chief Justice -- arising from the expected vacancy due to the retirement of CJ Reynato Puno -- think they can, through their antics, get the SC to reverse the ruling, they may just have to have another think coming. Their ploy just won’t work. It must be asked, however, why these groups — mostly identified as supporters of Liberal Party (LP) presidential bet Sen. Noynoy Aquino — protest too much, even to the point of saying that the high court amended the Constitution through this ruling, when they, in 2001, praised the tribunal to high heavens when the high court clearly amended the Constitution by issuing a ruling claiming that ousted President Joseph Estrada was deemed to have “constructively resigned,” based on an unauthenticated diary of his final hours, in newsclipping form yet and written by a third person..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100320com1.html

‘The destroyers’ FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/20/2010

The destroyers’

FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/20/2010 A group, calling itself a Supreme Court watchdog, protesting the ruling of the high court allowing Gloria Arroyo to appoint the replacement of Chief Justice, called on the presidential candidates to sign a covenant that in essence seeks their non-recognition of the Gloria-appointed CJ. This is obviously a group, made up of the frigging yellow civil socialites, supporting Liberal Party bet Noynoy Aquino. Out of all the presidential candidates, it is only Noynoy who not only has come out openly against a CJ appointed by Gloria, but has also vowed not to recognize any CJ appointed by her, even threatening to fire a new CJ appointed by Gloria while warning the rest of the justices not to recognize the new CJ, or else they too, would be fired. While all the other presidential bets took the view that it should not be Gloria who should appoint the next CJ, none of them threatened or vowed not to recognize a Gloria appointed CJ, as Noynoy did..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100320com2.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL The real score FRONTLINE ‘The destroyers’ focus Risque sex film arouses interest in Bollywood

Risque sex film arouses interest in Bollywood focus 03/20/2010

Risque sex film arouses interest in Bollywood

focus 03/20/2010 MUMBAI — A new film that includes sex, nudity and voyeurism has caused a stir in Bollywood as the industry tries hard to shed its traditionally conservative image. “Love Sex Aur Dhokha” (Love, Sex And Betrayal), released on Friday, explores the idea of sex in a small town in northern India, using security cameras and other devices to track the characters of three interlinked stories. The drama and its cast of newcomers have attracted attention as a result — not least because of stills published in the Mumbai press that show one of the female characters topless and in a passionate clinch on top of a man. But the so-called “secretly filmed” sex scene from which they were taken did not impress the censors, who cut it to just 15 seconds..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary20100320com3.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL The real score FRONTLINE ‘The destroyers’ focus Risque sex film arouses interest in Bollywood

GMA aide files P3-billion plunder rap vs Duterte 03/19/2010

Davao mayor, city officials also charged for second plunder, graft on ‘strong evidence’  GMA aide files P3-billion plunder rap vs Duterte 03/19/2010 A Malacañang presidential aide yesterday filed before the Office of the Ombudsman two separate charges of plunder, graft and corruption and grave misconduct against Davao City officials led by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and the officers of the City’s Local School Board (LSB) following Commission on Audit (CoA) reports that the city government has continuously failed to account for almost P3 billion worth of properties and equipment and has also misappropriated more than P11 million of the Special Education Fund (SEF). In his first complaint, Office of the President Assistant Secretary Pedro Domingo and current Presidential Commission on Good Government official, charged Duterte and “other responsible officials of Davao City” with plunder through malversation in multiple counts for their failure to account almost P3 billion worth of city government buildings, properties and equipment, as reported by the CoA. ..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.phheadlines/20100319hed1.html

HEADLINES GMA aide files P3-billion plunder rap vs Duterte JBC to Carpio, Morales: Still out, or in? Kris apologizes for Noynoy’s attack vs Erap Erap merely ‘misinformed’ on crisis — Mikey LP endorses ‘foe’ as Noynoy sets foot in Marcos country Carry out 1996 MNLF deal in full, OIC tells RP gov’t'

JBC to Carpio, Morales: Still out, or in? By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/19/2010

JBC to Carpio, Morales: Still out, or in?

By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/19/2010 Two senior incumbent magistrates of the Supreme Court (SC) will be asked by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) to formally affirm whether they are still interested to be considered for the position of Chief Justice which will be left vacant on May 17 upon the retirement of incumbent CJ Reynato Puno. It appears that the question has to be asked since the same two magistrates earlier had informed the JBC that, while they are honored to be nominated, they would, however, only accept it if the appointment is to be made by the next president, and not by President Arroyo. The high court the other day, however, ruled that Arroyo has the legal and constitutional right to appoint the next CJ and even ordered the JBC to submit the list to Malacañang..... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100319hed2.html

HEADLINES GMA aide files P3-billion plunder rap vs Duterte JBC to Carpio, Morales: Still out, or in? Kris apologizes for Noynoy’s attack vs Erap Erap merely ‘misinformed’ on crisis — Mikey LP endorses ‘foe’ as Noynoy sets foot in Marcos country Carry out 1996 MNLF deal in full, OIC tells RP gov’t'