BROADSHEETS

PHIL. DAILY INQUIRER -- 3 Pinoys To Die March 30

MANILA BULLETIN -- US Stops Japan Imports

PHILIPPINE STAR -- ‘Merci Exit To Boost Fight Vs Corrupiton 

MANILA STANDARD -- Aquino Presses Senate: Gutierrez Has Got To Go

MANILA TIMES -- Comelec OK’s Atienza Recount

MALAYA -- ARMM Poll Delay Faces Rejection

DAILY TRIBUNE -- Road User’s Taxes To Fund P-20-M Pork

TABLOIDS

PEOPLE’S JOURNAL -- 1 Week To Live

ABANTE -- 778 School Building Delikado Sa Lindol

PILIPINO STAR NGAYON -- Anak Ni Ghadafi Utas Sa Bomba

 

BALITA -- OMG Ayaw Mag Leave

PEOPLES TONIGHT -- Sadists’ Slave

BULGAR -- Kuryente Pre-Paid Na

 

ISSUES MONITORING

On Congress

Malacañang would like greater media coverage of the impeachment trial of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. “Given the amount of public interest, maybe it’s best to have it broadcast,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said. The camp of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez does not mind the Senate leadership’s gag order on her impeachment trial but is worried that the public might not get the chance to understand the proceedings. (Philstar-p1)

THE Senate yesterday approved the rules that would govern the impeachment trial of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez for betrayal of public trust and at the same time thumbed down the proposal of Sen. Miriam Santiago to disallow senator-judges from being interviewed. The Senate adopted Senate Resolution No. 432 or the Resolution Adopting the Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials with minimal amendments introduced by individual senators. (Malaya-p1)

Have mercy on “Merci.” Sen. Joker Arroyo yesterday made the call as he and colleagues finalized and approved the rules that will govern the impeachment court of the upper chamber when it takes up the case against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. “The rules that applied to (former President Joseph) Erap (Estrada), should be applied to Merci (Gutierrez). There should not be any difference so that everything is fair.  (Tribune-p3) 

Six Cabinet members were deemed bypassed by the Commission on Appointments (CA) yesterday as Congress went into 45-day recess. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said President Aquino must re-appoint Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes, National Economic and Development Authority Director General Cayetano Paderanga, and Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman. “Madali lang naman yun (That’s easy), during recess the President appoints people ad-interim,” he said. (Philstar-p2) Commission on Appointments

The straight path President Aquino claims to be treading took a turn leading to the crooked road on its way to the P20 million additional pork barrel for the House of Representatives members’ resounding “yes” vote to impeach the Ombudsman. (Tribune-Banner) 

On Presidency

The time-tested resilience of Filipinos to overcome crisis would help the country survive the impact on the local economy of the civil war in Libya and devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. President Aquino, who visited Cagayan de Oro City, said local industries have managed to recover from turbulences in the domestic and international markets similar to the 1997 Asian financial crisis and the 2008 global financial meltdown. (Philstar-p6) 

President Aquino expressed gratefulness yesterday that the Filipino people’s trust in him remained high. He said seeing them even just waving at him could make him feel much better. Aquino also insisted he was okay despite his coughing fits and even challenged reporters to climb up the stairs with him while inside a mall in Cagayan de Oro City where he attended an economic forum. (Philstar-p6) 

President Aquino said the cold he caught during his state visits to Indonesia and Singapore two weeks ago may have contributed to the soreness of his throat which resulted in his frequent coughing. The President, in an interview after the Philippine economic briefing with Regional Development Council at the Mallberry Suites in Cagayan de Oro, said: (Malaya-p1) 

On The Ombudsman

Impeaching Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez is the “strongest signal” the Aquino administration can send to the public to prove the seriousness of its fight against corruption. “The impeachment of the Ombudsman is the strongest signal we can send to you right now that we are trying to put in place the kind of level playing field for your businesses to survive and prosper in the long term,” President Aquino told businessmen attending the Philippine Economic Briefing in Cagayan de Oro City yesterday. (Philstar-Banner) 

On Pinoy Drug Mules

The three Filipino drug mules temporarily snatched from death’s door in China now have less than a week to live, and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is arranging for their families to see them for the last time.  The execution by lethal injection of Ramon Credo, Sally Villanueva and Elizabeth Batain will be carried out on March 30, the DFA announced Wednesday afternoon through its spokesperson, Assistant Foreign Secretary J. Eduardo Malaya. (PDI-Banner) 

On Pinoys In Libya

Thousands of Filipinos have ignored the government’s last call to return home, preferring to stay in Libya rather than face a bleak future in the Philippines, Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario reported yesterday.  Del Rosario made a second trip in less than a month to the Libyan capital, Tripoli, overland from Tunisia on Tuesday, staying for several hours, meeting with Filipinos at the Philippine Embassy and telling them that the Aquino administration’s voluntary repatriation program from the insurrection-torn country was ending the following day. (PDI-p1) 

On Earthquake

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) yesterday urged Filipinos, especially those living in liquefaction-prone areas as well as those in Metro Manila, to build strong houses and buildings. Phivolcs director Renato Solidum Jr. said liquefaction could happen after a massive earthquake and several communities along coastal areas in Metro Manila and nearby provinces could be affected. (Philstar-p1) 

On The Armed Forces

Civilians could be asked to man military offices performing finance-related tasks to enhance check and balance systems. Eduardo Batac, Department of National Defense (DND) spokesman, said a panel investigating corruption in the military has made this proposal amid claims that military funds have been misused. “There are certain positions which will be made purely civilian and even positions which (may) be elevated to the department level instead of leaving it at AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) level,” he said. (Philstar-p5) 

The Department of National Defense (DND) special investigating committee (SIC) acknowledged there were irregularities in the utilization of funds for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) during the past administration but admitted “helplessness” in running after those involved in the fund mess. At a press briefing, DND spokesman Eduardo Batac said initial findings by the DND-SIC, headed by lawyer Patrick Velez, noted the “improper disbursement” of military funds from 2005 and earlier. (Tribune-p1) 

On ARMM Elections

The Commission on Elections yesterday asked the Senate to decide before the end of the week on the fate of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) election after the House of Representatives at around 10 p.m. Tuesday passed House Bill 4146 to postpone the election until 2013. The vote was 191-47-2. The election has been scheduled on August 8. (Malaya-Banner) 

On Universal Health Care

Amid President Aquino’s push for a universal health care program, an official of the World Health Organization yesterday lamented the continued absence of sufficient healthcare coverage in the country. "We are all troubled that in many countries around the world, millions of people suffer from ill-health because they cannot get the health care they need or because paying for health care devastates their livelihood," said Dr Shin Young-soo, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific. (Malaya-p1) 

On Luneta Hostage Taking

A Hong Kong inquest has concluded that Philippine officials contributed to or caused the deaths of eight local tourists gunned down by a disgruntled former police officer who held their tour bus hostage in Manila in August. A five-member jury at Hong Kong’s coroner’s court faulted Philippine authorities for not meeting the hostage-taker’s demands quickly enough and lying to him. The jury said the bungled rescue operation also delayed medical treatment for two victims who might have been saved. (Philstar-p1) 

On Marcos Burial

Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. urged the administration not to ignore the proposal granting his father, the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, a hero’s burial. “That resolution cannot be ignored,” Marcos said. According to Marcos, he did not expect Sorsogon Rep. Salvador Escudero to initiate the proposal to have his father buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Escudero led some 204 lawmakers at the House of Representatives in signing a resolution urging President Aquino to allow the burial of the remains of Marcos – for years in a refrigerated crypt in Ilocos – at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. (Philstar-p5) 

On Gloria Arroyo

Former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo disclosed that before she became chief executive of the republic she had a normal life. Arroyo granted her first media interview since leaving the presidency, and the congresswoman of Pampanga’s second district looked relaxed in a light blue dress, smiling and seemingly at peace with herself and the world despite the controversies that continue to hound her. Arroyo talked about the more domestic role she has just embraced. She welcomed this writer into her Quezon City home and showed their family portrait that showed her as a young wife and mother at 22, with husband Jose Miguel and eldest son Mikey, taken at the garden swing that is still on the front lawn. (Philstar-p7) 

On Government Examinations

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) has junked the four-strike policy on taking the civil service examinations for those who would like to work in the government or earn a promotion. The new rule states that there shall be no limit to the number of times one can take the examination, both for the professional and sub-professional levels. The CSC announced yesterday that it recently amended its policy on the frequency of taking the tests in light of numerous requests from the public for the rule to be scrapped. (Philstar-p3) 

On Election Recount

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has allowed manual recount of ballots contested by former Mayor Joselito Atienza of Manila against incumbent Mayor Alfredo Lim, opening the floodgates for more questions on the accuracy of Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines. The order of the Comelec First Division for a manual recount of the ballots in the election protest filed by Atienza on May 21, 2010 was released on Monday and signed by Division Presiding Commissioner Rene Sarmiento. (Mla Times-Banner) 

On US Pinoys

Filipinos planning to come to the United States as tourists and overstay to seek employment may have to rethink their plans if a proposal to strengthen worker identity checks here comes into effect. The federal government is exploring the possibility of using a major credit rating agency to verify the identity of US workers, a move that could make it far more difficult for undocumented immigrants to get jobs using stolen Social Security numbers. (Philstar-p4) 

On PCSO

At least 84 gaming corporations, including existing operators of the defunct Small Town Lottery (STL), have applied for the newly launched Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office ’s (PCSO) Loterya ng Bayan (PLB), PCSO chair Margie Juico said yesterday. Juico said the applications are now undergoing review. Among those who applied were 16 gaming corporations initially granted authority to operate STL prior to the launching of the PLB. (Philstar-p4) 

On The Environment

The Villar Foundation put the Philippines in the international spotlight once again when it bagged the prestigious United Nations Best Practices Award in recognition of its efforts to protect water resources in the country, and at the same time provide livelihood to hundreds of needy Filipinos. (Philstar-p1)