Daily News Highlights – June 21, 2016 Edition

President-elect Rodrigo Duterte offered the post of secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to ABS-CBN Foundation chairperson Gina Lopez. She says she “honored” and will “seriously consider it.” Lopez vehemently opposes mining activities and coal-fired power plants. She is the daughter of the late ABS-CBN chairman emeritus Eugenio Lopez Jr. The television channel is perceived to be anti-Duterte by Duterte supporters, especially after it broadcast an anti-Duterte ad. Duterte earlier promised the Left movement he would choose his Environment Secretary from their list of nominees.

Read more on Duterte’s offer to Gina Lopez.

President-elect Rodrigo Duterte may ask Congress for emergency powers to solve the traffic crisis in Mega Manila. Duterte’s Incoming Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said emergency powers will allow the government to open private subdivisions to traffic, among other things. Tugade said Congress needs to declare a crisis to allow the Duterte administration to wield emergency powers. He said Duterte’s preferred speaker of the House of Representatives, Davao del Norte’s Pantaleon Alvarez, was “receptive” to this idea. Tugade said Duterte can have these emergency powers for a maximum of two years.

Read more on emergency power for the president.

Media will not be allowed to enter Malacañang’s Rizal Hall to cover the inauguration of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte. Organizer Liset Marquez told Rappler that media outlets will only have access to videos and photos of the event from state-run broadcaster Radio TV Malacañang. Incoming Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar said only RTVM would have access to Rizal Hall where Duterte will receive around 500 guests. 

Read more on Duterte’s inauguration.

Vice President-elect Leni Robredo will be taking over the newly-rehabilitated Quezon City “Executive House,” a property with a lot of backstory. It was once known as the “Boracay Mansion,” one of the 17 properties discovered by investigative journalists in 2000 that was included in the plunder complaint against Estrada. The renovated “Executive House” was built over what little remained of the mansion. In the structure hangs a huge painting depicting the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr as a soldier, and another portraying the Philippines’ independence. Another painting in the main sitting area is by local celebrity Heart Evangelista.

Read more on Leni Robredo’s new office.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner Christian Lim said that the extension for filing campaign spending reports is illegal. Lim, who just resigned as head of of the Campaign Finance Office said going beyond 30 days is “tantamount to an amendment of the law.” Lim resigned after the Comelec en banc decided to extend the period for the filing of the Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) to accommodate the Liberal Party (LP). The LP filed its SOCE 6 days late. 

Read more on Comelec commissioner Lim’s “frustrations” over the SOCE filing extension.

Former Senate President Ernesto Maceda died Monday night, June 20. He was 81. His daughter-in-law Rica Vergara-Maceda said he died at 8:58 pm due to multiple organ failure. His son, Erwin, earlier said his father was suffering “complications due to the condition of his heart.” Maceda served 3 terms in the Senate and held 5 Cabinet positions. During his time in the Senate, he earned the title “Mr Exposé,” after he led a series of high-profile investigations. 

Read more on Ernesto Maceda’s death.

The US Senate on Monday rejected amendments aimed at reducing gun violence. This comes after the deadliest mass shooting in US history that left 49 dead at a gay nightclub in Orlando. The 4 amendments would have reined in some gun purchases, including those by suspected terrorists. The two Democratic amendments sought to bar those on FBI watchlists or no-fly lists from buying firearms, and to strengthen criminal and mental health background checks. Republicans blocked the amendments arguing that gun rights are protected by the US Constitution.

Read more on the US Senate’s rejection of gun control

A British exit from the European Union would plunge the two parties into a messy divorce and force them to build a new relationship after a long marriage. EU law stipulates a two-year time period for dissolving all contractual ties. EU President Donald Tusk warned that getting approval from each one of the remaining 27 member states, plus the European Parliament, could take a further 5 years – making 7 years in all. The British government warned in a report in February that it could take up to 10 years to tie up all the loose ends. 

Read more on the impending ‘messy divorce’ between Britain and the European Union.

LeBron James was unanimously named 2016 NBA Finals MVP after leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first-ever championship. The Cavs overcame the gritty Golden State Warriors at 93-89 in Game 7. Down 3-1 in the best-of-7 series, James, a 4-time NBA MVP, led the Cavaliers in a historic comeback as he scored back-to-back 41 points in Games 5 and 6. An emotional James dropped to his knees and cried on the court, wept as he kissed the trophy as he spoke about years of Cleveland sport.

Read more on LeBron’s MVP win and emotional moment on the court.

The cast and crew of Star Trek paid tribute to “Pavel Chekov,” Anton Yelchin, who died Sunday, June 19, in a car accident. JJ Abrams, who directed the first 2 installments of the Star Trek film, wrote on Twitter, “You were brilliant. You were kind. You were funny as hell, and supremely talented.” The cast and crew said in a statement: “We loved Anton, at work or at play. We are all shocked and numb and devastated by the world’s loss of an extraordinary young man.” It was signed, “His Star Trek family.” Star Trek cast members Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, and Karl Urban and director Justin Lin also expressed grief via social media.

Read more on the Star Trek cast’s tribute to Anton Yelchin.