Rappler Newscast | January 8, 2013

Today on Rappler.

• The US says the drone found in waters off the central Philippines was launched in a military drill in Guam last year.
• UNA launches its first coalition sortie and TV ad for the May polls.
• US President Barack Obama picks new CIA and Pentagon chiefs.

Story 1: US: DRONE LAUNCHED FROM GUAM IN 2012
The US embassy says the drone found off Masbate on Sunday was used in a drill outside Philippine territory and launched from Guam.
In a statement Tuesday, US embassy spokesperson Tina Malone says the device is a BQM-74E Aerial Target drone launched from the USS Chafee missile destroyer to provide a “realistic missile threat” during the Valiant Shield war games held by the US Navy on September 19 off the coast of Guam.
Valiant Shield is a US-only biannual exercise since 2006.
Malone adds, “It appears that ocean currents brought the drone to where it washed ashore.”
Fishermen recovered the drone near San Jacinto, Masbate Sunday.
Philippine Navy Captain Rommel Galang says “it appears to be an unmanned aerial vehicle or AUV used in reconnaissance.”
Malone denies this, saying the device is not armed and not used for surveillance.
Activist group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan asks the Senate Tuesday to probe the US military’s use of drones in the Philippines.
Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. says “The unrestricted use of US drones in Philippine airspace is a violation of our national sovereignty.”
In an interview with AFP last year, President Benigno Aquino confirmed the Philippines allows US drones to fly over its territory for reconnaissance flights, but are not allowed to make strikes.

Story 2: CAMPAIGN BEGINS AS UNA LAUNCHES SORTIES
The election season is here.
Vice President Jejomar Binay’s opposition United Nationalist Alliance begins its first coalition-organized sortie Tuesday for the May 13 polls.
The provincial sorties are synched with the release of UNA’s first TV ad.
The sorties and ads come a month before the start of the official campaign period– February 12 to May 11.
UNA secretary general and Navotas representative Toby Tiangco defends the ad saying there is no such thing as premature campaigning under the law.
While the ad does not explicitly ask viewers to vote for the UNA candidates, it introduces them and their platforms.
The slate ad features only 9 of UNA’s senatorial bets, excluding 3 senatorial candidates it shares with LP: Senators Loren Legarda and Francis Escudero, and former MTRCB chair Grace Poe-Llamanzares.
The ruling Liberal Party has yet to announce its sorties and air an ad featuring its senatorial ticket.

Story 3: SOTTO: ‘YOU CAN’T PUT A GOOD WEBSITE DOWN’
A group claiming to be Anonymous Philippines hacks the official website of Senate Majority Leader Tito Sotto past midnight Tuesday.
Upon loading titosotto.com, users are greeted with a pop-up message that says, “Defaced by hashtag prisoner.”
Clicking through reveals an animated Anonymous Philippines logo, with a message criticizing Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
Sotto says he is not aware his website was hacked.
The site returns to normal Tuesday morning.
After which, Sotto’s official Facebook page posts a message saying –quote “You can’t put a good website down.

Story 4: AQUINO GOV’T FALLS SHORT OF JOBS GENERATION TARGET
The Aquino administration falls short of its job generation target of a million per year.
According to the Socioeconomic Report 2010-2012 of the National Economic and Development Authority, the administration created an average of 997,000 jobs per year.
But NEDA says the “more serious problem” is poor quality jobs.
Around one in five employed Filipinos are looking for better jobs, longer work hours or additional jobs to make ends meet.
There are 8.5 million underemployed Filipinos in July 2012, more than thrice the 2.8 million underemployed in July 2011.
NEDA also reports the part-time employment rate shoots up, with part-time employees comprising more than one-third of total employed persons over the last two years.

Story 5: SWS: FEWER FAMILIES GO HUNGRY IN Q4
A Social Weather Stations survey shows fewer Filipino families went hungry during the Christmas season.
In the December 8 to 11 survey, 3.3 million households say they were hungry in the last 3 months.
This is the lowest since June 2011’s 3 million families, and lower than the 4.3 million households recorded in the August 2012 survey of SWS.
The SWS polled 1,200 adults nationwide.

Story 6: BUSINESS BOOMING AT FEAST OF BLACK NAZARENE
Every January, thousands of devotees troop to Quiapo for the Feast Day of the Black Nazarene.
But it’s not just a festival of devotion, it’s also a hawker’s mecca.
Devon Wong reports.

Towels fly.
Banners line the skies.
And crowds march to the beating of drums.
It’s a feast for the eyes, but this small spectacle is only a taste of what’s to come for the Feast Day of the Black Nazarene.
The Procession of Replicas gives devotees an opportunity to parade their personal tributes to the famous statue of a dark-skinned Jesus.  And the loyalty of devotees keeps Ate Jon’s business afloat year round.  
Ate Jon is a third generation vendor in Quiapo, but her clients come from across the map.

ATE JON, VENDOR: So many people. Foreigner, provincial, local.

Her husband, sister, son and daughter all manage separate stalls in the Plaza Miranda, but it’s devotees and the odd passing tourist that keep the family business running.
Each January, busloads of devotees travel to Quiapo to represent their communities on the Feast Day of the Black Nazarene,
What’s the cost of being a devotee? Ate Jon says it’s her wishing candles that are her best sellers.

ATE JON, VENDOR: Pray to family, then to good health. This one is only 20 pesos only. So you buy a statue, this one is 500 or 600.

It’s the strong faith of devotees that keep them frequenting Ate Jon’s booth and the Quaipo church each year.

ERLINA SESTINA, DEVOTEE: We started when were children. Even our replica is about thirty years old. It’s important to us because in times of struggle, we approach the Black Nazarene for help and our problems are solved somewhat. It really is very important to us.

If imitation marks the highest form of flattery, this year’s Black Nazarene can expect a strong showing.
Devon Wong, Rappler, Quiapo

Story 7: PRESIDENT OBAMA APPOINTS NEW CIA, PENTAGON CHIEFS
US President Barack Obama appoints a Republican and a former spy to top posts in the latest cabinet revamp in his second term.
Appointed are former Republican senator Chuck Hagel to lead the Defense Department and Deputy National Security Adviser John Brennan to head the Central Intelligence Agency or CIA.
Analysts say the appointment of Hagel, a Vietnam war veteran, could signal a policy shift in America’s involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq.
President Obama calls Hagel a ‘patriot’ who understands war.

BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: Chuck Hagel is the leader that our troops deserve. He is an American patriot…Maybe most importantly, Chuck knows that war is not an abstraction. He understands that sending young Americans to fight and bleed in the dirt and mud, that’s something we only do when it’s absolutely necessary.

But Hagel will face stiff opposition in the Senate, particularly from his fellow Republicans, who remember his criticism of the Bush administration’s handling of the war in Iraq.
Brennan, however, is expected to breeze through confirmation hearings.
He is Obama’s chief counterterrorism adviser with extensive experience in the CIA.
Brennan replaces former General David Petraeus who resigned in November over an affair with his biographer.
Outgoing Defense Secretary, Leon Panetta, thanks President Obama and says he will retire to his farm after almost fifty years in government service.

LEON PANETTA, US SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: The time has come for me to return to my wife Sylvia, our three sons, their families, our six grandchildren, and my walnut farm — dealing with a different set of nuts.

Story 8: THE wRap: YOUR WORLD IN ONE READ
At number 6, Three years into his first attempt as a startup CEO, Adam D’Angelo, Facebook’s first former chief technology officer, shares lessons he learned from his days at the giant social media firm.
These lessons he applied in Quora, a reputation-based question-and-answer site he founded.
He says, “Execution is more important than an idea.”
On evolving as a business leader after being immersed in coding, he shares: “Get comfortable giving up control,” and “Focus on the long term.”

At number 7, London-based Centre for Economics and Business Research says the US will continue to lead the world’s top economies for another decade, but China will narrow the gap as it produces 83% of U.S. annual output.
Asia’s rise and Europe’s downward slide is prominent in CEBR’s survey of 30 economies.
It says India will overtake the British economy in 2017 and surpass Germany as the 4th largest economy.
Fast-growing Indonesia is predicted to move from the 16th to 10th, with South Korea rising from 15th to become the 12th largest, and Thailand moving up from 30th to the 24th.

At number 8, Brazil’s branding as an economy poised for superpower status through its “green” energy landscape is in trouble.
Reuters Analysis shows Brazil’s plans 5 years ago, to capitalize on its home-grown sugarcane ethanol suffers one of the worst droughts in decades.
Brazil intends to make ethanol the main automobile fuel, and make renewable hydro power account for three-quarters of electricity.
Government’s role in forcing a 20% decline in electricity prices at the expense of the private sector does not help.

And at number 10, A Hollywood heartthrob and a high-profile executive chairman of a global business giant are eastward bound.
Brad Pitt confirms in his first entry on a verified account Sina Weibo, one of China’s hugely popular Twitter-like microblogs, that he’s visiting China.
The country previously banned Pitt after he starred in politically sensitive film “Seven Years in Tibet.”
Meanwhile, Google’s Eric Schmidt’s visit to North Korea as part of a US delegation is clouded in mystery.
One speculation is that Google is positioning him as the company’s global ambassador following anti-trust issues in Europe and UN and Kim Jong Un’s recent speech about expanding science and technology as a way forward for North Korea.

Story 9: BEST OF HIS GENERATION, MESSI WINS RECORD 4TH BALLON D’OR
Lionel Messi adds another record to his stellar list of achievements over the past 12 months on Monday as he wins an unprecedented 4th, consecutive, Ballon d’Or at a FIFA gala in Zurich.
The accolade seals Messi’s status as the greatest player of his generation, after he beats Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona teammate Andres Iniesta for the prize.
Messi’s success adds another landmark year for the Argentine who is already the top scorer in La Liga for the ongoing season with 25 goals.
He finished 2012 with 91 goals in all competitions.
But Messi insists his scoring records will mean nothing if Barcelona does not go on to take the La Liga title off Real, or fail to win the Champions League.

Story 10: PRINCE CHARLES ON HARRY, AND WILLIAM AND KATE’S BABY
Britain’s Prince Charles opens up in a TV program about Prince Harry and his future grandchild from Duke and Duchess of Cambridge William and Kate Middleton.
The 64-year-old royalty says he worries about Prince Harry, the younger of his 2 children, who is in Afghanistan as a British army helicopter pilot.
The environmentalist in Prince Charles surfaces when he talks about his future grandchild from firstborn William and wife Kate.
He says, “I’ve gone on for years about the importance of thinking about the long-term…in relation to the environmental damage, climate change and everything else.”
Prince Charles adds, “I don’t want to be confronted by my future grandchild, saying: Why didn’t you do something?”

Story 11: DRIVER-LESS CARS ON CES 2013
Are you ready for driverless cars?
According to the Wall Street Journal, automobile companies Toyota and Audi will showcase cars with autonomous-driving features at the Consumer Electronics Show or CES in Las Vegas.
Toyota on its website shows off a preview of one of its luxury cars with different sensors around it.
Toyota general manager Mark Templin tells LA times the car is still a –quote “pure research project”  and adds it likely will NOT be available in the marketplace in the near future.

– Rappler.com

Newscast production staff

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER / WRITER	Lilibeth Frondoso
DIRECTOR	Rupert Ambil
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER / PUBLISHER	Rodneil Quiteles
HEAD WRITER / PROMPTER	Katerina Francisco
MASTER EDITOR / PLAYBACK	Vicente Roxas
	Tre Batenga
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR / CAMERAMAN	Charlie Salazar
	Adrian Portugal
	Francis Lopez
GRAPHICS	Jessica Lazaro