News Roundup 14 November 2022
Nov 14, 2022 • 5 min Read
Hontiveros: ‘No extraordinarily compelling reasons’ for DepEd’s P150M confidential fund | INQUIRER.NET – Senator Risa Hontiveros insisted on Monday that there are “no extraordinarily compelling reasons” to provide the Department of Education (DepEd) a confidential fund. While discussing DepEd’s 2023 budget on the Senate floor, the senator inquired if the P150 million confidential fund of the agency has been retained or realigned for other better programs of government. Hontiveros, along with Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel, has been pushing for the realignment of DepEd’s confidential fund. Senator Pia Cayetano, who was defending DepEd’s budget, reminded her colleague about the statement of Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte that she would leave it to Congress to decide on the matter. “When we resumed session last week, I brought this to the attention of the body in caucus for the body to determine what it would like to do with the confidential funds and there were a number of proposals on the table so that remains for us as a body to determine, Your Honor,” Cayetano said. Hontiveros, however, noted that DepEd has been firm with its belief that its allocation of a confidential fund is legal and that they need it to protect the learners. “But gaya ng napag-usapan na natin, as expressed by the Secretary VP, they leave it to the wisdom of the Congress to decide on the matter,” she said. “So for the record, I hope that our colleagues in the Senate will share the view that there are no extraordinarily compelling reasons to provide a confidential fund to the education agency.” “After all, Mr. President, we should enable and empower school authorities to collaborate with national and local agencies to address and respond to their peace and order law enforcement and security needs,” she added. Justifying the need for a confidential fund, Duterte earlier told senators about the problems the education sector is facing such as drug involvement of personnel and students, abuses, violent extremism and terrorism, insurgency, and scam. Hontiveros later said that at a proper time, she would make the proper proposal regarding DepEd’s confidential fund.
Bayan slams gov’t report on human rights to UN | INQUIRER.NET – The government has cited opposing views among civil society groups on what constitutes human rights in its report to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), causing concern in progressive group Bayan that this approach may be used to escape accountability for continued violations in the country. In the 23-page advanced, unedited national report submitted by its Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat to the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR) working group, the Philippine government noted an “emerging trend whereby conflicts arise in human rights discussions as a result of nongovernment and civil society organizations having opposing … positions.” One of the “hotly contested issues,” it said, was of human rights as a form of defense but only for “those who do not advocate or resort to violent extremism to reform society.” Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes, who is in Geneva as part of a Philippine delegation taking part in the fifth UPR cycle, said the government might be citing the competing views to “justify the rights violations committed in the drug war and counter-insurgency drive [as] necessary to ‘protect’ the public from illegal drugs and terrorism or at least say that there is a gray area involving human rights.” “Does the PH government subscribe to the thinking that those accused of “violent extremism” and “terrorism” are not entitled to human rights? Is this why it engages in indiscriminate bombings of communities suspected of supporting rebels? Is this why many revolutionaries have been summarily executed instead of being taken as prisoners of war and hors de combat?” he asked. Reyes urged the public to remain vigilant and critical of the government’s report, particularly on Nov. 14, the start of the fifth UPR cycle which reviews the rights record of UN member states every four and a half years. The Philippines also told the UNHRC that it had already “fully implemented” at least 103 recommendations but “noted or rejected” 33 others made following the fourth UPR cycle in 2017. The government, however, did not clearly indicate which recommendations it had merely noted or rejected. Nevertheless, it promised to continue implementing the UN Joint Programme (UNJP) and to “sustain its human rights advocacy in a democratic system of governance.”
DOJ sets preliminary probe into raps vs Bantag, others in Percy Lapid case | PHILSTAR.COM – The Department of Justice is moving forward on murder complaints filed against suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag over the killings of radio broadcaster Percy Lapid and inmate Jun Villamor, said to be the middleman in the Lapid killing. Preliminary investigation proceedings are set on November 23 and December 5, Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento said Monday. Malcontento also said subpoenas to respondents — including Bantag — have been issued, but DOJ spokesperson Mico Clavano said these have yet to be released. Clavano, in a separate message, said there are at least 11 subpoenas to be sent out. The summons will give the respondents the opportunity to file their respective counter-affidavits. The DOJ earlier said the earlier murder complaint against confessed gunman Joel Escorial over the killing of Lapid, and more recent raps by the Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation that include Bantag among the respondents over the deaths of the broadcaster and Villamor have been consolidated into one case. A three-member panel of prosecutors led by Deputy State Prosecutor Olivia Torrevillas will handle the complaints. Joining her are Senior Assistant State Prosecutors Josie Christina Dugay and Charlie Guhit. Meanwhile, the PNP defended its decision to hold a joint press conference on allegations against Bantag, even as it called on the suspended prisons chief to cooperate in its investigation. Bantag has been throwing his own accusations against Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin ‘Boying” Remulla and has tried to cast doubt on the investigation. Speaking at a forum organized by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines, Police Gen. Rodolfo Azurin said the press conference to present the National Bureau of Investigation’s finding was a joint effort of the NBI and the PNP.
