Rappler Newscast | October 4, 2013

Story 1: AQUINO SLAMMED BEFORE FATHER’S MONUMENT
Following the success of the #MillionPeopleMarch in Luneta last August, groups against the pork barrel hold another protest in Makati City.
The groups want concrete calls for action and specific policy recommendations.
Paterno Esmaquel reports.

For the first time, hundreds of protesters slam the President right in front of his father’s monument in Makati.
Protesters challenge the President to scrap his pork barrel, alleging Aquino’s discretionary funds were misused.
They also challenge lawmakers to let go of their pork.
Fifty nine year old Manolo Pascual came all the way from Bulacan.
He isn’t an activist, but makes it a point to come here.
He feels betrayed by the President he elected.

MANOLO PASCUAL, BULACAN RESIDENT: Nagpapasalamat ho ako na dito ginawa, dahil nandidiyan ang tatay niya eh. Baka sakaling magising ang mata niya na, teka muna, nalilihis na yata ako ng landas. Lumiliko na yata ang campaign slogan kong tuwid na daan. (I’m thankful that we did the rally here, because his father is right here. I hope he opens his eyes: “Wait a minute, I might be going the wrong direction. I might be straying from my campaign slogan of a straight path.”)

Comedienne Mae Paner, Juana Change on social media says the venue reminds the President of his father’s legacy.
She says it’s also a wake-up call for the middle-class in the country’s financial capital.

MAE PANER, A.K.A. JUANA CHANGE: I think napakamagandang lugar ng Makati sapagkat ito ang sentro ng negosyo kaya naisip natin na gawin dito, para sabihin natin sa mga tao ng Makati, the business sector. Kasi sila ang pinaka-iffy sa pork barrel system. Ewan ko kung takot sila, masyado silang takot sa presidente, o masyadong sariling interest nila ang iniisip nila. (I think Makati is a good venue because this is the center of commerce, so we thought of doing it here, to send a message to the people of Makati, the business sector. Because they’re the most iffy about the pork barrel system. I don’t know if they’re scared, or if they’re too scared of the President, or they’re thinking too much of their own interests.)

Organizers say they want specific policies to address patronage politics, the root of fund misuse.
Protesters end the rally with a symbol of vigilance against corruption.

PATERNO ESMAQUEL, REPORTING: This is the monument of the President’s father, the martyred senator Benigno Aquino Jr. It evokes memories of heroism. For protesters, it’s also a warning for the President not to stain his father’s memory.

Story 2: MAID SET UP BY NAPOLES RELEASED FROM JAIL
The maid whom alleged pork barrel queen Janet Lim Napoles set up for qualified theft was released from Makati City Jail Friday.
Napoles allegedly planted evidence last February against Dominga Cadelina, Napoles’ maid for 10 years.
Napoles, who is detained in Laguna for serious illegal detention charges, surrendered to the President on August 28.
She briefly joined Cadelina at the Makati City Jail before being transferred.

Story 3: PALACE SAYS IT MAY STOP DAP RELEASES
The government’s Disbursement Acceleration Program or DAP may be stopped eventually but the Palace says it has nothing to do with the recent controversy questioning its constitutionality.
Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte says the releases under the program decreased over the years because public spending picked up.
The budget department says a total of P137.3 billion is released under DAP.
The Aquino administration explains details of DAP after senators questioned its constitutionality, with critics calling it a bribe for the conviction of former Chief Justice Renato Corona.

Story 4: POPE GETS LETTER FROM LAID-OFF PINOYS
Pope Francis personally receives a letter from former employees of Philippine Airlines or PAL caught in a two-year labor dispute.
Fr Edwin Gariguez of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines delivers the letter to the Pope in Vatican City.
In their letter, PAL Employees’ Association president Gerry Rivera requests help to –quote– “restore justice to the working people.”
Rivera says the Pope’s intercession in the case may –quote– “prove decisive in a settlement fair to the workers.”
Up to 2,600 PAL employees lost their jobs in September 2011 after PAL decided to outsource its in-flight services.
Union members refused to accept severance packages and picketed outside PAL’s office in Pasay City.
In turn, PAL filed criminal charges against PALEA members for paralyzing its operations in late 2011.
In the early months of his papacy, the Pope has broken protocols and has shown a strong reformist drive.
But he has shied away from taking specific positions on local political or labor issues.

Story 5: POLICE RAID MISUARI’S HOME
Police raid the home of Moro National Liberation Front founder Nur Misuari, seizing documents and other items.
Chief Inspector Ariel Huesca says officers used explosives to enter the locked residential compound.
Police ask prosecutors to bring charges against Misuari and his followers, who clashed with government forces in Zamboanga last month in a standoff that left more than 200 people dead.
Misuari is accused of sending his followers to block a proposed peace deal between the government and a rival Muslim rebel group.

Story 6: BUNGLED CHANCES IN ZAMBOANGA CITY
The 20-day standoff between government troops and members of the Moro National Liberation Front could have turned out differently.
A lot of things happened on September 12 — Day 4 of the standoff — that shaped the direction of government’s response to the crisis.
Members of the crisis management committee were actively negotiating with MNLF fighters to peacefully end the conflict — but nobody coordinated these efforts.
On September 13, inside the combat zone in Sta Catalina, priest Fr Michael Ufana — a hostage of Misuari’s top commander Habier Malik — offered to bring Malik’s demands to the government to stop the fighting.
Meanwhile, barangay councilor and radio reporter Teodyver Arquiza was also waiting for calls from a “Commander Ismael” from the MNLF so they could complete the surrender of about 80 MNLF fighters and the release of their 38 hostages in adjacent Barangay Sta Barbara.
Arquiza said the commander’s sole demand was that he report the surrender live on radio.
He reported over Radio Mindanao Network the possible release of hostages.
The afternoon of September 12, Arquiza went to Sta Barbara to escort the hostages out of the battle zone. But he was blocked by government troops.
That night, Rappler reported that about 80 MNLF fighters from the Yakan tribe of Basilan surrendered to police troops in Sta Barbara.
This was immediately denied by Interior Secretary Roxas, and by President Benigno Aquino the following day.
The denials surprised people involved in the surrender, including Arquiza.
While Arquiza was at the Westmincom lounge that night, security officials talked about the difficulty of processing surrenderees in the evening.
On Friday afternoon, the silence was cut by heavy firing.
By then, both Ufana and Arquiza knew they failed.
Towards the end of the crisis, the Philippine National Police revealed attempts by MNLF fighters to surrender.
A September 22 press release read: “Repeated attempts by the Yakan group to contact the government and state their opposition to Malik’s action failed.”
Looking back, Arquiza said much of the destruction in Zamboanga City could have been avoided.

Story 7: JUNIOR JUSTICE IS NEW SANDIGANBAYAN HEAD
The most junior justice in the Sandiganbayan is appointed the new head of the anti-graft court.
Sandiganbayan Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang will be replacing Francisco Villaruz, who retired as presiding justice on June 8.
She bests 4 other nominees to the position — including two senior justices.
A former Assistant Solicitor General, Cabotaje-Tang filed the pleading opposing the maligned plea bargain deal between the Sandiganbayan and former military comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia.
She was appointed to the anti-graft court in June 2012.

Story 8: MAYNILAD SUES PH GOVT OVER WATER RATE CUT
Water concessionaire Maynilad files a dispute notice before the International Chamber of Commerce after the water regulator decided to cut rates in the metro.
Maynilad is the west zone concessionaire of the privatized water services in the capital while Manila Water Co. Inc is the east zone concessionaire.
Manila Water also earlier sued water regulator MWSS before the ICC.
In September, MWSS says the average basic charge of Manila Water will go down by P1.45 per cubic meter, while Maynilad’s rates will go down by P1.29.

Story 9: FREEDOM HOUSE: CYBERCRIME LAW MARS PH FREEDOM
US-based group Freedom House says the Philippines has the freest Internet in Southeast Asia but says the controversial anti-cybercrime law marred its “excellent” record.
In a report, the group says the country’s “freedom on the net score” dropped from 23 last year to 25 because of the law.
The report says the law allows authorities to block online content without a warrant, facilitate government surveillance, and punish online libel with up to 12 years’ imprisonment.
The Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order on the implementation of the law.
Fifteen petitions were filed against it.
Freedom House credits civil society activism for helping suspend the law’s implementation but says the “law’s status going forward is unclear.”

Story 10: US EXPERTS: CHINA MUST ‘PLAY BY THE RULES,’ PHILIPPINES MUST ARM
Two former US officials say China has to learn to “play by the rules” and the Philippines must keep South China Sea disputes from escalating.
The Philippines and China are engaged in a territorial dispute over parts of the West Philippine Sea or South China Sea.
Speaking at the sidelines of a maritime security forum in Manila, former US defense undersecretary Walter Slocombe says no one wants to see a confrontation with China over territory.
He says –quote– “We must find a way to defend our interests and our sovereignty.”
Slocombe adds,  “There is a real danger of an incident blowing up and becoming a source of a much bigger conflict.”
Former US forces commander in the Pacific Dennis Blair, adds –quote– “We have to convince China that as it involves the rest of the region and the world in solving its problems, it has to play by the rules.”
Slocombe says the Philippines should also shore up its own maritime defense aside from just relying on the US to back it up.

Story 11: OBAMA: DANGEROUS DEBT LIMIT, SHUTDOWN MUST END
On the third day of the US shutdown, new talks over a broad budget deal offer fresh hopes for ending the fiscal shutdown.
The New York Times reports House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan initiates conversations with senior House Republicans on a broad deficit reduction deal.
Ryan’s deal must happen quickly to provide a framework that Speaker John Boehner can use to win over enough Republicans to reopen the government.
NYT also reports Boehner privately told Republican lawmakers that he would use a combination of Republican and Democratic votes to increase the federal debt limit if necessary.

Story 12: THE wRap: YOUR WORLD IN ONE READ
At number 4, Twitter unveils its highly anticipated stock offering, with the popular service seeking to raise up to $1 billion on Wall Street.
The IPO is expected to be the most sought-after since Facebook in May 2012.
Private share transactions value the company at around $10 billion.
The California company also publishes financial data, revealing it has 218 million active users as of June 30.
The company though has been losing money since 2010.
In 2012, it reported a $79.4 million with revenues of $317 million.

At number 6, US police shot and killed a woman after a high-speed chase from the White House to the Capitol building.
Media footage shows the car speeding off after striking a barrier at the outer perimeter of White House security.
The woman was driving with a one-year-old child in her black sedan.
The child is now under protective custody.
The chief of the Capitol Police says there is no information to suggest a terrorist motive for the “isolated incident.”
The incident comes less than three weeks since a gunman opened fire at the Navy Yard.

And at number 8, Indonesian investigators arrest the constitutional court’s top judge for allegedly accepting a bribe in a case linked to a disputed election.
Akil Mochtar was arrested after a businessman and a lawmaker allegedly handed him around three billion rupiah or more than $250,000.
The Corruption Eradication Commission says the bribery is linked to a disputed election in Gunung Mas district on Borneo island on September 4.