News Roundup 16 December 2020
Dec 16, 2020 • 4 min Read
ICC prosecutor’s report ‘significant’ step toward attaining justice for EJK victims — group | PHILSTAR.COM – The report by the International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor is a “significant step in the right direction” in attaining justice for victims of extrajudicial killings under President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody “war on drugs,” a non-governmental organization said. The Philippine Coalition on the International Criminal Court lauded Wednesday the report of ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, which stated that there is a “reasonable basis to believe” that crimes against humanity had taken place in the government’s anti-narcotics campaign. Bensouda said she anticipates reaching a decision on whether to seek permission to open a formal investigation into the situation in the Philippines in the first half of 2021. Although there is no investigation yet, Dr. Aurora Parong, PCICC spokesperson, said the development “opens up a clear avenue of justice” for victims of alleged extrajudicial executions in the country. “Failure or inability to conduct criminal prosecutions would mean that the [Office of the Prosecutor] will be left with no choice but to ask the ICC to approve a request to open an investigation into the situation in the Philippines on one of the most serious crimes under its jurisdiction, particularly crimes against humanity. This aspect of the examination is the admissibility phase,” Parong said. PCICC played an important role in the Philippine signing of the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the Hague-based tribunal, in 2000. But in 2019, the Philippines under the leadership of Duterte withdrew from the ICC after Bensouda initiated a preliminary examination into the alleged extrajudicial killings in the anti-drug crackdown.
NLEx toll holiday in Valenzuela City ends Wednesday noon | INQUIRER.NET – The toll holiday for the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) in Valenzuela City will end Wednesday at noon as Mayor Rex Gatchalian ordered the “conditional lifting” of the suspension order of the business permit of NLEx Corp. “Toll Holiday is ending at 12:01 pm, December 16, 2020, as Mayor @rex_gatchalian orders conditional lifting of the suspension order on NLEX Corporation’s business permit,” the local government unit (LGU) announced in a Facebook post. According to the LGU, the city government and NLEx Corp. also agreed to lift the barriers in all radio-frequency identification (RFID) lanes in toll plazas within Valenzuela City from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. “Toll fees will be collected during these hours,” the LGU also said. The barriers will be set in place from 10:01 p.m. to 4:59 a.m. in all RFID lanes “for safety reasons.” Both parties have agreed on the reinstatement of cash lanes in strategic locations in toll plazas in the city, as well as on upgrading the RFID system and account management “to address growing consumer complaints to be completed on or before January 30, 2021.”
Act quickly in procuring COVID-19 vaccines – Robredo | Manila Bulletin – With the procurement of the coronavirus vaccine on the line, Vice President Leni Robredo on Wednesday urged the government not to make the same mistake – slow response to curb the spread of COVID-19 in March. In a webinar hosted by Kaya Natin, which was co-founded by the vice president’s late husband Interior secretary Jesse Robredo, she lamented that the government is again behind in the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine. “If 2020 was a lesson to us, if we are quick to the draw, we will be able to respond well,” Robredo said. “The [timely procurement] of the vaccine will make up for the spread of the virus, right? If we are very swift on this [negotiating with pharmaceutical companies], we will be in line for the deliveries,” she said in Filipino. The Vice President added that it will be easier to regain the confidence of the public that life can go back to normal if the government purchases the vaccines on time. “The longer we wait, that will be more difficult.” Robredo also said that her office is ready to fill in the gaps in the procurement and distribution of the vaccines.
Ping slams gov’t borrowing habit | Malaya Business Insight – Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is on a roll. Yesterday, Lacson blasted the government’s compulsion to borrow money for its numerous undertakings, “but not always with the corresponding results.” “The sad reality is our national government doesn’t get tired of borrowing,” he said, adding that while borrowing may be necessary for the economy, the government has yet to show results of the trillions of pesos it has loaned over the years. “When I first became a senator in 2001, our national government’s outstanding debt was P2.88 trillion. Over the Arroyo, Aquino and Duterte administrations, it has ballooned to P10.027 trillion as of October this year, from P8.2 trillion at end-2019,” Lacson said in a radio interview. “Just for the past 11 to 12 months under the Duterte administration, the borrowing pace accelerated at a record speed,” he said, adding he got his figures from the National Treasury website. Citing Washington as a point of comparison, the senator said that while the United States has borrowed $27 trillion, their infrastructure development and social services are being adequately provided. “In our case, we have expressways and skyways but they are provided and maintained by the private sector. Tayo, utang ng utang, toll naman ng toll (We just keep on borrowing, and these just keep on piling). Have we seen infrastructure and development to improve the quality of life of Filipinos?” he asked.
