News Roundup 14 March 2024
Mar 14, 2024 • 4 min Read
House on Quiboloy’s detention: ‘We promise them a pleasant experience’ | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — A “pleasant” detention center awaits religious leader and alleged rapist Apollo Quiboloy, as the House of Representatives plans to release the arrest order against him next week, according to House Secretary General Reginald Velasco.
“Yes, it [arrest order] will be ready by tomorrow. So, it can be served by next week,” Velasco said in a press conference.
“Well, the chairman of the franchise committee will sign it, and any authorized House official can sign it. So, it’s either the Speaker or me who can sign the warrant of arrest. So, pending pa yun. That’s why we will release it probably Monday or Tuesday,” he added.
The House official also said Quiboloy and other incoming detainees will have a fine time in the Senate.
“We promise them a pleasant experience […] These rooms are air-conditioned and accessible to the relatives of the person in detention and to the media whenever necessary. You can monitor their stay, and hopefully, they will enjoy it here,” Velasco disclosed.
On March 12, Quiboloy was cited for contempt for opting to skip the chamber’s committee on legislative franchises’ hearing on the ownership of Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI).
Full Story at: House on Quiboloy’s detention: ‘We promise them a pleasant experience’ | Inquirer News
Cocaine brick sightings prompts PCG to increase patrol of eastern seaboard | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — The recovery of over P122.7 million worth of suspected cocaine floating in the shorelines and waters off Eastern Visayas and Mindanao prompted the Philippine Coast Guard to heighten its alert in the eastern seaboard of the archipelago.
PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan ordered intensified vessel monitoring, intelligence operations, and expanded coastal security patrols in these areas.
Gavan also directed local PCG personnel to improve its communications with local fisherfolks “for a more robust monitoring system.”
Fisherfolks and coastal residents found identical cocaine bricks in Eastern Samar, Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur.
On March 8, a fisherfolk found 20 bricks of suspected cocaine “bricks” off Barangay Tangbo in Arteche town, Eastern Samar.
Full Story at: Cocaine brick sightings prompts PCG to increase patrol of eastern seaboard | Inquirer News
Filipino seafarers injured in Houthi attack back in Philippines | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — Two wounded Filipino crew members of a missile-stricken merchant vessel have returned to the Philippines, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Thursday.
They arrived via a chartered medical evacuation flight on Thursday morning after they were cleared “fit for travel” by medical authorities in Djibouti.
“The two were received by a medical team and taken to hospital where they will continue their recovery,” the DMW said, adding the crewmen and their families have requested privacy.
The two crewmen suffered serious injuries when their vessel True Confidence was struck by a missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels last week.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Worker Affairs Eduardo de Vega earlier said one suffered severe facial burns and the other had his leg amputated.
Eleven crew members of True Confidence returned to the Philippines on Tuesday, nearly a week after a missile fired by Houthi rebels struck the fuel tanks of the Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned ship.
Full Story at: Filipino seafarers injured in Houthi attack back in Philippines | Philstar.com
Rights groups refute Marcos’ claim of ‘progress’ in ending drug war abuses | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — Human rights groups on Thursday refuted the president’s recent claim that the government is “progressing” in terms of curbing police abuses in the so-called “war on drugs” initiated by his predecessor.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA) in separate statements criticized Marcos for touting the “lessened” problem of drugs under his leadership during his visit to Germany this week.
Marcos’ claim “disregards the fact that the killings have continued under his watch and, equally important, his administration is failing to provide accountability for past and recent crimes,” said Bryony Lau, Asia Deputy Director at HRW.
During his three-day visit to Germany this week, Marcos said that the government’s approach to drug use has “changed significantly,” according to reports of his meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday.
“I diametrically opposed to handling the drug problem in that way, by confrontation, by violence and it really requires so much, more much deeper understanding on the problem and the much deeper solution. So, yes, I think that we are also progressing when it comes to that,” Marcos said.
Full Story at: Rights groups refute Marcos’ claim of ‘progress’ in ending drug war abuses | Philstar.com
