October 1, 2013 Edition

The United States federal government shut down Tuesday, October 1 (noon in Manila) after Congress failed to pass a funding bill on time, the first such major suspension of US government work in 17 years. The failure to pass a funding bill by Congress was a result of the wrangling between President Barack Obama and Republicans, with the Democratic-led Senate and Republican House of Representatives sending funding bills between them that were doomed to fail. Around 800,000 government workers faced being sent home, government services were to be slashed and monuments such as the Statue of Liberty and national parks were to be closed.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Months after the the impeachment of former Chief Justice Renato Corona in May 2012, lawmakers received an off-budget disbursement of P10 million each, Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte Jr admitted on September 30. But he denied this had anything to do with getting votes to impeach Corona. A senator earlier exposed that senators received P50M each after the chamber convicted Corona and dismissed him as chief justice. The controversy puts the Aquino administration in a bad light given its “Tuwid na daan” slogan (straight and narrow path) and following a pork barrel scam that has involved mostly opposition lawmakers.

Read the full story on Rappler.

The Commission on Audit (COA) is asking officials of the National Agri-Business Corporation (Nabcor) and the dubious non-governmental organizations (NGOs) it accredited to return to government at least P1.45 billion in lawmakers’ pork barrel that had been misused over 5 years. The latest COA report, released on September 25, confirmed Rappler reports, where Nabcor’s dealings with questionable NGOs involving lawmakers’ Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) shows most clearly how the pork barrel scam works. Its former president Alan Javellana testified before the Senate on September 5 that his agency funded NGOs without vetting them. The justice department has since included him among 38 charged with plunder or malversation before the Ombudsman in relation to the PDAF scam.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Three weeks since the standoff between government troops and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels, the government began efforts to rebuild Zamboanga City which has been massively damaged by fighting and gunfire. The city hall itself reopened on September 30. But the 100,000 evacuees have nothing to return to, their villages burned as a result of the siege. Government records show more than 10,000 homes were razed to the ground. It is estimated that the conflict area — about 30-40 hectares of densely packed communities, mangrove swamps and ponds – would take about two weeks to clear. Sporadic firefights continue between remnants of the Moro National Liberation Front and government troops.

Read the full story on Rappler.

JG Summit Holdings Inc. of the Gokongwei family has agreed to buy the shares of the San Miguel group in power distributor Manila Electric Company (Meralco). In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on September 30, JG Summit said it has agreed to purchase the shares held by San Miguel Corporation and its units, San Miguel Pure Foods Company Inc. and SMC Global Power Holdings Inc., in Meralco. In a surprise move in 2008, San Miguel Corp. acquired its 27-percent stake in the country’s biggest power player from state pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). It marked government’s retreat from its over 3-decade hold of a power distributor that had a checkered past. It was engaged in acrimonious boardroom battles with the Manuel V. Pangilinan and Lopez business groups, which eventually decided to leave.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Filipinos should consider as a wake-up call the Fifth Assessment report on climate change compiled by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which blames human activities for global warming. It predicted that world temperatures would rise by 0.3 to 4.8 degrees Celsius this century. Sea levels are projected to rise between 26 and 82 centimeters. There will also be an increase in heatwaves, floods and droughts, warned the report. A national network of Philippine organizations said the report should translate to domestic action. The national government “must stop paying lip service” to renewable energy, for example, it added.

Read the full story on Rappler.

The global war on heroin, cocaine and cannabis is failing to stem supply, as prices of these drugs have tumbled while seizures of them have risen, according to a study published September 30. Three of the programs monitored international drugs trafficking; 3 focused on the US; and one tracked the drugs business in Australia. The prices of heroin, cocaine and cannabis tumbled by 81%, 80% and 86% respectively between 1990 and 2007 in the United States. Over the same period, the average purity of these drugs rose by 60%, 11% and 161% respectively. The findings coincide with debate in several countries about whether to loosen laws on certain drugs.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Coca-Cola has lost its crown as the world’s best brand, unseated by the iconic iPhone and iPad maker Apple. This marks the first time the soft drink missed the top spot on the “best global brand report,” a line-up created in 2000 by marketing consultancy Interbrand, a unit of the Omnicom advertising conglomerate. Coca-Cola dropped two places in 2013, also losing to Google, the search engine, which came in second place. Apple has always been on the list, beginning at #36 in 2000, but has slowly climbed the ranks.

Read full story on Rappler.

As one headline put it, they’re dropping like dominoes. After CNN cancelled plans for a documentary on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, NBC announced it has dropped the idea of producing a miniseries about her. The Republican party earlier voted to ban CNN and NBC from sponsoring Republican primary debates unless they cancelled their Clinton projects. The Clinton camp also apparently pressured NBC to drop the show. The Democrats are eyeing Hillary Clinton as their possible standard-bearer in the 2016 presidential race.

Read the full story on Politico.

NBA fever hits Asia as 4 of the league’s best teams barnstorm Asia this October for the NBA Global Games. The Houston Rockets take on the Indiana Pacers at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila on October 10 before both squads match up anew in Taipei on October 13. On October 15, the Los Angeles Lakers battle the retooled Golden State Warriors in separate outings in China. NBA legends Robert Horry, Jalen Rose and Clyde Drexler will be at the Global Games in both Manila and Taipei while 3 more legends in Muggsy Bogues, Dell Curry and AC Green will join the festivities in China.

Read the full story on Rappler.