Daily News Highlights – March 29, 2015 Edition

A giant of global politics is laid to rest Sunday, March 29, as Singapore bids farewell to Lee Kuan Yew – the man hailed as the leader who transformed the city-state from a tiny speck on the map to a global economic and diplomatic powerhouse.

After a week of mourning, where thousands of people from VIPs to regular fold paid respects, Lee is accorded a state funeral, with dozens of world leaders in attendance. Tens of thousands of people lined a 15.4-kilometer (9.6-mile) route to bid farewell to the leader who served as prime minister for 31 years.

Read more and watch the live stream on Rappler.

Boxing great Manny Pacquiao is No. 1 on the list of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). That’s as far as its list of top individual tax payments for 2013 goes. The BIR list covers only regular income tax payments made as of November 24, 2014. The boxing champ, the only individual who broke the P100-million mark on the list, paid a total of P163.84 million ($3.6 million) in regular income taxes.

Of the 12 Filipinos included on Forbes 2015 list of billionaires, only one was in the top 10 of top taxpayers. Andrew Tan, the 4th richest Filipino in 2014, landed 5th on the BIR list having paid P67.1 million ($1.49 million).

Know more on Rappler.

The co-pilot who investigators believe crashed a passenger jet into the French Alps, killing all 150 aboard, worried “health problems” would dash his dreams and vowed one day to do something to “change the whole system”, an ex-girlfriend told a German newspaper.

The 26-year-old woman, identified only as Maria W., recalled in an interview with the mass-circulation Bild daily how Andreas Lubitz told her: “One day I’m going to do something that will change the whole system, and everyone will know my name and remember.” “I never knew what he meant by that but now it makes sense,” it quoted the “shocked” flight attendant as saying.

Read more on Rappler.

Officials from the executive department who lie about their educational record face the grave sanction of dismissal. But elected officials do not – and can continue to hold public office and run for re-election. While a foreign affairs official was dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman for making false claims about her educational background, Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr is safe from any sanctions so far. The Ombudsman does not have administrative jurisdiction over the Senate, and the chamber’s ethics committee, the body which will look into the matter, is leaderless. “Nobody wants to take it,” Senate President Franklin Drilon told Rappler in a telephone interview, “to sit in judgment of one’s peers.”

Read more on Newsbreak.

The Philippines on Saturday, March 28, shot back at Beijing’s criticism of its activities in the South China Sea, saying they were “in no way comparable to China’s massive reclamation activities” in the waters. It also said accusations that Manila was being “hypocritical” would not distract people from Beijing’s own actions which were raising regional tensions.

The statement by foreign affairs department spokesman Charles Jose was the latest volley in an increasingly tense war of words over the sea, parts of which are claimed by both countries as well as Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Read more on Rappler.

The Philippine government has vowed to pursue “all possible” means to save convicted Filipina drug courier Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso despite the denial of its initial appeal for judicial review by Indonesia’s Supreme Court.

“We will continue to exhaust all possible diplomatic and legal means to save Mary Jane’s life, Philippine Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario said in a statement on Friday, March 27. Del Rosario added, “We wish to assure her family that the Philippine Government is giving its full attention to this case and that it stands ready to provide them with all the assistance they may require.”

Read more on Rappler.

The  Philippines glowed in the dark as the country joined the rest of the world in observing the annual Earth Hour event on Saturday, March 28. The main switch-off in the country was staged in a festive glow-in-the-dark Zumba party held at the Quezon City Memorial Circle on Saturday night. Other parts of the country also held various activities in support of the movement first launched by conservation group World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Australia in 2007.

This year, Earth Hour comes ahead of a crucial UN meeting in Paris in December which is bringing together the global community in an effort to limit global warming.

Read more, and see the photos from across the country, on Rappler.

Nonito Donaire Jr rebounded from his knockout loss to Nicholas Walters with an easy two-round destruction of Brazilian journeyman William Prado at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Philippines. There were no knockdowns but Donaire (34-3, 21 knockouts) wobbled Prado (22-4-1, 15 KOs) twice in the second round, pushing Prado to the ropes where he landed several unanswered left hook haymakers on his defenseless foe before referee Bruce McTavish stopped the fight.

Read more on Rappler.

Long vacations or time off from the daily grind may cause some hidden feelings to bubble up to the surface. Depending on how you’re feeling, and if you have nothing major planned for the next few days, check out our list of fun things you might want to do. Whether you’re feeling spiritual, reflective, restless, drained or inspired, there’s something for everyone.

Here are some ideas on how to recharge during the Holy Week break.

Rappler is hosting Fr Johnny Go’s online retreat, with the theme, “God in a Season of Disquiet.” Fr J, as he is fondly called, has held online Holy Week retreats for the past 8 years, and has drawn thousands of regular followers. He hosted past retreats for Holy Week as well as Advent on his personal website, www.pinsoflight.net.

His online Holy Week retreat, Go explained, caters to Filipinos who can’t leave their house or office for a face-to-face retreat. It can also help Filipinos who work overseas. The retreat uses the best multimedia elements – from video clips to online surveys to music that soothes the spirit.

The online retreat will run from Holy Thursday, April 2, to Holy Saturday, April 4.