News Roundup 15 September 2021
Sep 15, 2021 • 4 min Read
Philippines logs 16,989 more COVID-19 cases | PHILSTAR.COM – The Department of Health on Wednesday said 16,989 more Filipinos contracted the coronavirus, pushing the country’s total to 2,283,011. Today’s figures saw active cases down by 7,224 from the 177,670 on September 14. The Department of Health said four laboratories did not turn in screening results. “The relatively low cases today is due to lower laboratory output last Monday, September 13,” DOH said.
- Active cases: 170,446 or 7.5% of the total
- Recoveries: 24,123, bringing the number to 2,076,823
- Deaths: 214, or now 35,742 in total
Veteran rights lawyer Chel Diokno to vie for Senate spot in 2022 | PHILSTAR.COM – Veteran rights lawyer Chel Diokno will run for senator again in 2022, pinning his hopes on a “changed” political landscape that may work in his favor this time around. “Yes, I have decided that I will be running for the Senate,” Diokno told One News’ “The Chiefs” on Tuesday. Confirming his renewed bid on social media Wednesday, Diokno also said in Filipino: “There are so many things that are not fair here [in our country] — in the law [and] the COVID-19 response.” “Gawin nating mas makatarungan ang buhay ng mga Pilipino (Let’s make the lives of Filipinos more just).” Diokno was part of Otso Diretso, a coalition of opposition bets that was soundly defeated by administration candidates in the 2019 midterm elections. But Diokno believes that “a lot has changed” since then. “I learned a lot from the mid-year election,” he told One News in Filipino. “I’ve had two years to think about it and to plan… a better [campaign].” “The political landscape has changed,” he added. “We have seen how important it is to have a good message and to really take advantage of the social media platforms out there.” Diokno said that he is “at this point, determined to remain an independent” but noted that he is open to this changing in order to increase the opposition’s chances of performing well in 2022. He also reiterated his support for opposition coalition 1Sambayan which earlier named him as one of its candidates for the country’s two highest posts. “I think [the] opposition will have a bigger chance if we all come together and we can all unite behind a common slate”
‘No nation deserves him,’ Gordon says of Duterte | INQUIRER.NET – “No nation deserves him.” This was how Senator Richard Gordon described President Rodrigo Duterte, citing the Chief Executive’s controversial remarks in the past and alleged betrayal of people’s trust. “No nation deserves him. I mean… minumura ang Santo Papa, minumura ang Diyos, sinasabi sa mga tao, sinasabi sa mga pulis, barilin niyo sa vagina yung mga babae, yung mga NPA (New People’s Army),” Gordon said in an interview Tuesday. (No nation deserves him. I mean he cursed at the Pope, at God, and told police to shoot women in the vagina, to shoot the NPA.) “No nation deserves him because nagtiwala ang tao [because the public trusted him] and he betrayed the trust of the people,” he added. Gordon said this as Duterte continued to slam the Senate blue ribbon committee’s investigation into the allegedly overpriced purchases of the government for its pandemic response in 2020. “Manduduro at manduduro ‘yan, they will intimidate,” the senator, chairman of the panel, added. (He will keep on picking on us, they will intimidate.)
Ateneo Martial Law Museum urges Toni Gonzaga to interview victims of Martial Law | Manila Bulletin – The Ateneo Martial Law Museum on Wednesday, Sept. 15, expressed disdain over actress Toni Gonzaga’s decision to interview former senator Bongbong Marcos and urged the TV host to invite Martial Law victims and surviving families instead. In an open letter, the Museum said Gonzaga’s interview “benefits no one and pushes back the struggle to gain justice from the atrocities committed by the Marcos regime and against historical revisionism running rampant amongst our people.” It added that the show “contributed to the Marcos family’s attempts to whitewash their human rights violations and its proven historical record.” “May we invite you instead to talk to the victims and surviving families of the Martial Law regime? The Ateneo Martial Law Museum stands ready to facilitate your encounter with the victim of Martial Law and with the truth. In fact, we think that hearing their stories and struggles will be much more inspirational for your audience than talking to anyone from the Marcos family,” the Museum said. “These are the stories that celebrities and influencers should strive to popularize and disseminate as they are exemplary models of how we can strive to be a better country for everyone. In the first place, the only reason why we are able to pursue our creative pursuits in a free society today was because of their sacrifices. We owe a lot to those who sacrificed their lives in order to fight for our freedom and democracy.” The Museum also urged celebrities to use their platforms, influence, and privilege in “order to aid the progress of the common good.” The Ateneo Martial Law Museum is a digital museum housed in the School of Social Sciences of the Ateneo de Manila University that is mandated to teach the public about the country’s history under the Marcos regime.
