News Roundup 30 August 2020
Aug 30, 2020 • 3 min Read
Robredo opposes leading RevGov: I am not an ‘unconstitutional successor’ | INQUIRER.NET – Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday thumbed down the reports of leading a revolutionary government, saying she will only comply with the constitution. “Unang una, Ka Ely, noong nabasa ko, natawa ako. Parang gusto kong sabihin, constitutional successor po ako—hindi unconstitutional, hindi extra-constitutional successor. Hindi ako magiging bahagi ng kahit ano, ng kahit ano, Ka Ely, na galaw na labag sa ating Konstitusyon,” Robredo told her co-host Ely Saludar during her BISErbisyong Leni program, reacting to calls for her to lead a revolutionary government. (First and foremost, when I read it, I just laughed. I would like to say, I am a constitutional successor, I am not unconsitutional — not an extra-constitutional successor. I don’t want to be a part of something that violates our constitution.) Robredo said she will not join an illegal movement because government officials must stay loyal to the 1987 Constitution.
Pangilinan: Police, military frontliners need better protection vs COVID-19 | PHILSTAR.COM – Security agencies enforcing protocols under the coronavirus-induced quarantine—particularly those from the military and the national police—should have more stringent health measures for its frontliners as cases in their ranks continue to rise, a lawmaker said Sunday. This comes after Police Regional Office 2 in Tuguegarao, Cagayan implemented a lockdown of Tuguegarao City Police Station when all of its personnel were been infected with COVID-19. “We are concerned and concerned about the news that more and more of our police officers are positive for COVID-19. They are a big part of the government’s pandemic response. But what happens to plans if they get sick one after another while performing their duties?,” Sen. Francis Pangilinan said in a statement in a mix of Filipino and English. “There has to be a better, clearer, safer way to go about the new normal.”
Kabacan killing enrages Muslim communities | Manila Bulletin – The killing of nine Muslim farmers in Kabacan, North Cotabato has sparked outrage among Muslim communities, including those identified with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), after initial investigations revealed that they were allegedly executed, and not killed in a shootout. At around 12:20 p.m. of August 29, nine people were killed in what authorities initially reported was a shootout between feuding clans, or locally known as a rido. Eight of the victims were killed on the spot, while the other one expired around 4 p.m. at a local hospital. All of them were farmers, according to the police report. But police report later disclosed that there was no firefight as the victims were allegedly gunned down after they were waylaid by unidentified gunmen along the road inside the University of Southern Mindanao (USM). In a statement posted on his Facebook account, Sammy Al Mansor, chief of staff of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), condemned the killing, saying that it was a massacre. The incident he said “reminds us of the dark period in our not so recent past, when the Bangsamoro people were besieged and beleaguered in their very own ancestral homeland, by forces who are privileged with impunity and assured of unbridled movement in the senseless and brutal murder of unarmed civilians.” “Multiple murder at high noon in a provincial road intimates confidence that no one will stop them, and no one will run after them,” said Al Mansor, which is the nom de guerre of now Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Executive Secretary Abdulraof Macacua.
US ready to respond to threats in SCS | The Manila Times – The United States assured its allies that it would respond to any threat on the South China Sea, its Navy official said. “Our naval forces remain ready to respond to any threats to our allies or partners throughout the region,” Vice Adm. Scott Conn, commander of the Third Fleet, said in a teleconference last Thursday. Conn gave the assurance as the US began last August 17 the Rim of the Pacific Exercise (Rimpac), the largest international maritime warfare event in the world, with 10 countries participating, including the Philippines.
