News Roundup 20 February 2024
Feb 20, 2024 • 5 min Read
Arrest warrant for Castro, Tamano served | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — A municipal trial court (MTC) in Bulacan has issued a warrant for the arrest of environmental activists Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro.
The warrant pertains to charges of oral defamation, filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in December 2023, as the agency dismissed the perjury charges previously filed against the two.
The Doña Remedios Trinidad MTC served the warrant dated Feb. 2, 2024 against Castro and Tamano.
According to a copy of the arrest warrant obtained by Philstar.com, the bail set for both costs P18,000 each.
If found guilty, Castro and Tamano may face imprisonment of up to six months.
In a statement, the Hands Off Jhed and Jonila Network condemned the arrest of the two activists.
“Ngayong araw, balak muling ipagkait sa dalawa ang kanilang kalayaan at karapatan matapos ibaba ang panukalang arestuhin sila sa kasong oral defamation. Sa kabila ito ng pinanigang pasya ng Korte Suprema para garantyahan ng proteksyon (writ of amparo) ang dalawa,” the group’s statement posted on Facebook read.
(Today, there is a plan to once again deny them their freedom and rights after the proposal to arrest them for oral defamation was issued. This is despite the Supreme Court’s recent decision to grant them protection [writ of amparo]).
Full Story at: Arrest warrant for Castro, Tamano served | Philstar.com
Catholic bishops decry ‘elusive’ accountability in Mindoro oil spill | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — As the first anniversary of the Mindoro oil spill nears, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) denounced the lack of accountability from companies owning the sunken oil tanker M/T Princess Empress.
In a statement on Tuesday, the CBCP’s Episcopal Commission on Social Action, Justice and Peace, along with Caritas Philippines, said that both the people and the environment continue to suffer from the impacts of the oil spill.
“For over half a year afterward, thousands of fisherfolk and other sectors were robbed of their means of living. Families had little to eat, and many also suffered illnesses from exposure to pollution. Thousands of hectares of mangroves and seagrasses were placed in peril, and so was the very fabric of life in our seas,” the CBCP’s statement read.
“The gravity of impacts has yet to be fully measured and continues to ripple today and in years to come,” it added.
The bishops expressed their support in seeking justice for the victims of the oil spill, highlighting the need for timely compensation for those affected by the incident.
“We decry the continued elusiveness of accountability on the part of companies behind the oil spill, and erring authorities that contributed to the incident,” the bishop’s statement read.
Full Story at: Catholic bishops decry ‘elusive’ accountability in Mindoro oil spill | Philstar.com
Imee Marcos’ budget realigning led to millions not receiving 4Ps — Bongalon | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — An Ako Bicol party-list lawmaker has accused Senator Imee Marcos of being behind budget realignments in 2023, which led to 4.3 million poor Filipinos not getting aid through the government’s conditional cash transfer program.
In a statement on Tuesday, Rep. Raul Angelo Bongalon said that this amounts to almost 900,000 households who did not get assistance through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) because Marcos supposedly redirected P13 billion to another social amelioration program.
“If we do the math, P13 billion divided by P15,000 per household per year, means 867,000 families or 4.3 million poor individuals got zero cash assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) 4Ps program last year, thanks to Sen. Imee,” Bongalon said.
“As vice chair of the Committee on Appropriations, I learned that it was Sen. Marcos – as head of the Senate finance sub-committee in charge of DSWD’s budget – who slashed P13 billion from the 4Ps budget. This left the most vulnerable sectors without financial aid last year, possibly until the Department of Social Welfare and Development receives its 2024 budget,” he added.
INQUIRER.net has contacted Senator Marcos for her side of the story, but she only said ‘dedma’ — a Filipino slang for ignoring something.
Bongalon said that Marcos’ complaints about Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) were ironic since she herself made realignments.
Full Story at: Imee Marcos’ budget realigning led to millions not receiving 4Ps — Bongalon (inquirer.net)
Alleged 50% ‘cut’ in rebel returnees’ cash aid bared in Senate | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) commanders are allegedly getting a 50 percent “cut” from the P100,000 cash grant given to rebel returnees.
Former MILF fighters made this revelation when they personally met with Senator Jinggoy Estrada on Tuesday to complain against their commanders. Estrada said Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. was also in the meeting.
“Ang naging problema po nito, itong mga MILF rebel returnees ay nabigyan po ng P100,000 na pinangako po ng gobyerno pero nung pagbigay sa kanila ng P100,00 ‘yung kanilang mga commander ay kinuha po ‘yung kalahati and that is one of their concerns,” the senator said during the hearing of the Senate committee on national defense.
(The problem is that these MILF rebel returnees were given P100,000 as promised by the government, but when they received the P100,000, their commanders took half of it, and that is one of their concerns)
“And if we have 26,000 combatants who are willing to surrender, eh P1.3 billion ‘yung hindi mapupunta dun sa mismong mga rebel returnees kundi sa mga commanders, so siguro kailangan na nating pa-imbestigahan ‘yung ganitong klaseng problema,” the panel head added.
(And if we have 26,000 combatants who are willing to surrender, that’s P1.3 billion that won’t go to the actual rebel returnees but to the commanders, so perhaps we need to investigate this kind of problem)
Full Story at: Alleged 50% ‘cut’ in rebel returnees’ cash aid bared in Senate (inquirer.net)
