BROADSHEETS

PHIL. DAILY INQUIRER -- Merci Defenders Fail To Halt Impeachment

MANILA BULLETIN -- 14,097 OFWs Trapped

PHILIPPINE STAR -- Sufficient Grounds Found To Oust Merci

MANILA STANDARD -- Expect Another P1 Hike In Gas Prices Next Week

MANILA TIMES -- Politicians Drug Peddlers

MALAYA -- Merci Impeach Gets Going

DAILY TRIBUNE -- House Railroads Merci’s Impeach

TABLOIDS

PEOPLE’S JOURNAL -- Impeach Motions Vs ‘Merci’ Okayed

ABANTE -- 4 Pinoy Sa Poder Ni Gadhafi Na-Trap

PILIPINO STAR NGAYON -- 4 Pinoy ‘Hinostage’ Ni Gadhafi!

BALITA -- Simula Ng Kalbaryo

PEOPLES TONIGHT -- Lolo, 64’ Dies During Sex

BULGAR -- Mister Nadulas Todas Sa Dalang Kutsilyo

ISSUES MONITORING

On Congress

In the end, the allies of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez could not stop the impeachment juggernaut.  The majority of the House of Representatives’ committee on justice yesterday proceeded to vote on the sufficiency of the two impeachment complaints filed against Gutierrez despite a plea from her lawyers and complaints of “railroading” by her outnumbered allies. (PDI-Banner) 

Ilocos Sur Rep. Ronald Singson resigned as a member of Congress yesterday, less than a week after a Hong Kong court sentenced him to imprisonment for 18 months for drug trafficking. “In keeping with the time-honored tradition of this august Congress to be ever vigilant that all who walk in its corridors or sit in its various sessions must come with clean hands, clean minds and clean hearts, I have come to the painful decision to tender my resignation as a member of the 15th Congress,” he said in a letter to Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. (Philstar-p1) 

The much-awaited plenary debates on the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) Bill were called off yesterday after the centralized air conditioning units of the plenary hall of the House of Representatives broke down. House Majority Leader and Mandaluyong Rep. Neptali Gonzales said House Secretary General Marilyn Yap had informed him in a text message that the air-conditioning units in the main building that housed the session hall had broken down. (Philstar-p2) 

On Presidency

President Aquino has opted not to join other world leaders in condemning embattled Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi, saying ensuring the safety of Filipinos in the strife-torn North African state is his primary concern. “I may have the same opinion on a personal level but my first problem has to deal with the 26,000 people who are already there,” he told Palace reporters in a briefing shortly after his first Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council meeting Monday. (Philstar-p1) 

An administration lawmaker filed yesterday a resolution proposing to grant President Aquino emergency powers in preparation for a possible fuel and food crisis that may hit the country in the wake of the political violence in oil-producing nations in the Middle East. Ang Kasangga party-list Rep. Teodorico Haresco filed House Resolution 1027 granting  the President emergency powers for at least 90 days. Haresco pushed to grant the President emergency powers to deal with the expected fallout of the political turmoil in oil-producing countries where millions of Filipinos are employed. (Philstar-p6) 

President Aquino again raised the ghosts of the past telling his security details under the Presidential Security Group (PSG) of supposed individuals seeking to resurrect the corrupt system of governance.  Speaking at the 25th founding anniversary of the PSG, Aquino also refused suggestions that progress of the nation could be achieved faster if the government is run with an iron fist.  (Tribune-p1) 

On Pinoys In Libya

Nearly 10,000 Filipinos are on their way home from Libya, with more than 3,500 of them already out of the strife-torn North African country, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said yesterday. The DOLE’s Middle East Crisis Monitoring Center has identified 3,544 Filipinos who have already left Libya while 4,097 more are still inside waiting to be evacuated, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said. (PDI-p1) 

As a senator complained about the snail-paced repatriation of distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Libya, stranded OFWs in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, complained that Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) officials are collecting money for airfare. A chapter of OFW support group Migrante said President Aquino should issue an appropriate instruction to OWWA over the actions of its officials in Saudi Arabia. (Tribune-p1) 

On The Armed Forces

Armed Forces chief Gen. Ricardo David Jr. bade farewell yesterday to the major services and thanked them for supporting his eight-month stint. David, who will retire on March 8, first visited the Navy headquarters along Roxas Boulevard in Manila, followed by the Air Force at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City and the Army headquarters at Fort Bonifacio in Makati. Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr. said David discussed with the troops the new security plan “Bayanihan,” which aims to address rebellion through development programs. (Philstar-p1) 

Armed Forces chief Gen. Ricardo David started bidding farewell to major military units yesterday, six days before he relinquishes his post. He ends his tour of duty amid allegations of corruption involving military officials in past administrations. His successor has not been named. (Malaya-p1) 

On The PCGG

Twenty-five years after it was created to go after the Marcos ill-gotten wealth, the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) seeks to redeem itself in the eyes of the public. Lawyer Andres Bautista, PCGG chairman, vowed to lead the agency’s move to “right the wrongs of the past.” (Philstar-p4) 

On The Supreme Court

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima yesterday took the Supreme Court to task for its string of controversial rulings, particularly on the petition of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez to stop the House committee on justice from pushing through with the impeachment complaints against her. (Malaya-p1) 

 

A day after key Palace allies in Congress vowed to pursue impeachment charges against the justices of the Supreme Court who had voted to issue a status quo order on the House of Repre-sentatives to hold in abeyance the impeach-ment hearings against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, President Aquino’s head lawyer herself denounced the SC justices and accused the tribunal of railroading the issuance of a status quo order in the impeachment case against the Ombudsman. (Tribune-p1) 

On Drugs and Politicians

Politicians and showbusiness personalities are among those closely watched by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in its campaign against anti-illegal drugs. “Yes, politicians and actors, among others, are among those on our list,” the PDEA spokesman, Director Derrick Arnold Carreon, said on Tuesday. (Mla Times-Banner) 

On Piracy

The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) has tagged Quiapo district in Manila as among the 33 “notorious” Internet and physical piracy “hot spots” requiring intensified anti-piracy efforts. Results of the Special 301 Review of Notorious Markets released on February 28 noted that “Quiapo is just one example of several locations and neighborhoods, especially in metropolitan Manila, known to deal in counterfeit and pirated goods such as clothing, shoes, watches and handbags.” (Mla Times-p2) 

On Marcos ‘Victims’

The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) on Tuesday said the final, universal settlement for Martial Law victims depends on Malacañang’s decision. PCGG Chairman Andres Bautista said the commission is only a recommendatory body and such move is best decided by the President. “It’s really between the Marcoses and Mr. Aquino but yes, he [President Aquino] can enter into such kind of settlement. We will follow whatever marching orders is given to us by the President,” Bautista said during the commission’s 25th founding anniversary on Tuesday. (Mla Times-p3)