October 22, 2014 Edition

Vice President Jejomar Binay is hoping President Benigno Aquino III will endorse him in his 2016 presidential bid. In an interview with ANC’s Lynda Jumilla, Binay said every vote counts and that a presidential endorsement would go a long way for him. Binay also sought to highlight the close relationship he’s had with the Aquino family ever since he was appointed as mayor by former president Corazon Aquino in 1986. He also again downplayed news reports that he begged Aquino to stop the Senate probe into corruption allegations even as he declined to reveal what transpired during an October 14 meeting with President Aquino.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Hong Kong’s embattled Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying offered an olive branch to pro-democracy protestors on Tuesday, October 21 and said he was open to creating a more democratic election committee before scheduled elections in 2017. Leung, however, reiterated that Beijing would not back down on vetting his successor. The offer is still a long way from meeting the core demands of protestors who say anything other than public nomination of candidates is unacceptable. But his comments could pave the way for more talks between student-led protestors and the Hong Kong government.

Read the full story on Rappler.

The Philippine military received on Wednesday, October 22 Private First Class Joseph Scott Pemberton, the US Marine suspected of killing transgender Filipino Jennifer Laude. Pemberton is now detained in an air-conditioned 20-footer van inside Camp Aguinaldo, the headquarters of the Philippine military. He remains under the legal custody of the US, according to foreign affairs secretary Albert del Rosario. Pemberton did not show up at the October 21 preliminary hearing on the murder case filed against him. But family members of Laude together with Laude’s German fiancé, Marc Sueselback, were present at court. Olongapo City Prosecutor Emilie Fe Delos Santos told the legal counsel of the US soldier that Pemberton should attend the next preliminary hearing on October 27. Jennifer Laude was found dead in a hotel on October 11. Investigators say Laude was last seen with a US soldier on the night of the murder.

Read the full story on Rappler here, here, and here.

The Philippine government is ramping up preparations for a possible case of an Ebola infection as the outbreak claims more lives in West Africa. Although there are no cases of Ebola infections at present in the country, the government and the World Health Organization (WHO) are not taking any chances. WHO country representative Julie Hall said the Philippines is being systematic in reviewing preparedness protocols for Ebola. The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM), a government hospital, was designated as the national referral center for the treatment of infectious diseases. The center is capable of treating up to 14 patients with Ebola.

Read the full story on Rappler.

An Egyptian court will hear on January 1 an appeal by 3 Al-Jazeera journalists and 4 co-defendants against their conviction of ties with Islamists, a judicial official said Tuesday. Australian Peter Greste, Egyptian-Canadian Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Egyptian producer Baher Mohamed were convicted in June of aiding the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood and spreading false news that portrayed Egypt as being in a state of “civil war”. Egyptian authorities accuse Al-Jazeera of backing the Muslim Brotherhood. The jailing of the 3 journalists sparked international outrage. Egypt’s Court of Cassation will examine the appeal on January 1, a court official told AFP, adding that it will also study an appeal filed by the prosecution against the two acquittals.

Read the full story on Rappler.

A paralyzed Bulgarian man was able to regain sensation in his lower body and walk again after receiving revolutionary treatment in Poland. Dark Fidyka was paralyzed from the chest down following a knife attack in 2010. But doctors took cells from his nose and transplanted them into his spinal column. Nerve cells in the nose are able to regenerate and the experiment had hoped to regenerate damaged cells in the spine. Doctors have hailed the experiment but will need to do more tests before any conclusive results can be made.

Read the full story on Rappler.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday, October 21, affirmed its dismissal of an anti-graft court justice linked to alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Naples. The High Court denied the motion for reconsideration of Sandiganbayan Associate Justice Gregory Ong for “lack of merit.” On September 23, the Court voted 8-5-2 declaring Ong guilty of gross misconduct, dishonesty and impropriety. The court reiterated in its October 21 ruling that Ong violated the New Code of Judicial Conduct when he acquitted Napoles in a malversation case in 1998.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Prince William’s wife Kate on Tuesday, October 21, made her first public appearance since her second pregnancy was announced as she welcomed Singaporean President Tony Tan to Britain for his state visit. Kate was last seen at a ceremony on August 5 and was said to have suffered from severe morning sickness. The Duchess of Cambridge appeared in the pink of health as she and William, the second in line to the throne, formally welcomed Tan and his wife to Britain. Kate is due to give birth in April.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Imagine if you could plan your own city’s transit line. How would you design your perfect bus or jeepney system or routes from, say, Pasig to Quiapo or, if that’s already working perfectly fine, what about planning transit lines to and from remote villages? A simple new tool called Transitmix.net can do this for you now. Transitmix is a web-based sketching tool that can help you draw routes more efficiently. The tool allows users to share maps and crowdsource better routes. Transitmix is currently being used by city planners and is available for users in the Philippines. Now only if we can redesign the roads.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Firefighters in a Los Angeles suburb had to rescue a 30-year old woman on Sunday, Oct 19 after she got stuck in the chimney of a guy she dated. Venture County Fire Department firefighters dismantled parts of the chimney and used dishwashing soap to help remove Genoveva Nunez-Figueroa from the chimney. Nunez-Figueroa and the homeowner previously dated. It was unclear why she tried to ‘play Santa Claus’ and use the chimney to enter the home. But it wasn’t the first time she tried to break into the home.

Read the full story on CBS Los Angeles and Mashable.

Image from Shutterstock.