Manigong Bagong Taon 2016

With a passing year, shall pass the pains and troubles of the past. Stop thinking about the times that are gone, instead waste your time worrying about the future. May you have a great New Year.

Merry Christmas! 2015

May the peace and joy of Christmas
be with you today
and throughout the New Year.

Latina Contestants Unite Against Miss Philippines

Latina contestant in the recent Miss Universe pageant are uniting to wage war against Miss Philippines.

According to a report on TMZ, Miss Puerto Rico, Miss Costa Rica, Miss Mexico and other Latina contestants swarmed Miss Colombia to console her after she was de-throned because of Steve Harvey's mistake.

They said that they are not blaming Steve Harvey for the error and even said that he was gracious. They were blaming Miss Philippines for the embarrassment, though they can't say why it is her fault.

Some of the Latina contestants backstage were saying that Miss Philippines did not deserve the crown. We're told most of them snubbed the winner, not congratulating her on the victory.

Miss Germany Sarah-Lorraine Riek in an interview also said that she and the other contestants are not happy with the Miss Universe results.

In an interview posted on Monday, December 21 on the Facebook page of the pageant website Missosology, Sarah-Lorraine said that she couldn't believe the turn of events, and that she felt that Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez was robbed of the crown.

"I couldn't believe it, I was so upset," said Sarah-Lorraine about the winners announcement mix-up.

Bullet Planting in NAIA Continuous, 3 passengers Caught with Bullets

MANILA, Philippines - Former senator Francisco Tatad niece, was suppose to board her flight but she was put on hold along with an American and a 74-year-old grandmother when the X-ray screener found bullets in their belongings while undergoing security check at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

NAIA personnel said Rosanna Tatad, 31, was found with a bullet in her shoulder bag last December 13, 2015. Security screening officer Anna Margarita Repario said she saw an image of ammunition after Tatad’s bag passed through the X-ray scanner.

The bullet was found after Repario inspected the bag in the presence of Tatad and Senior Police Officer 1 Allan Sonio.

Tatad, of Congressional Model Subdivision, Camarin, Caloocan City, said that she did not own the bullet. She was subjected to inquest and charged with violation of Republic Act 10591.

American Joseph Ocasiones, 35, was also held when a 9mm caliber bullet was found in his trolley bag last Tuesday December 15, 2015. He was bound for San Francisco, USA with his 5 year old daughter.

NAIA police said X-ray screening officer Rica Verano saw the image of the bullet in the trolley bag of Ocasiones. She called Police Officer 3 Robinson Fernandez, the duty officer. Ocasiones was arrested and detained at the police jail at the airport.

He denied owning the bullet found in his bag. “Why would I carry ammunition when I know that it’s prohibited?” he said.

“I read and saw news from newspapers and on TV that many passengers were caught having bullets in their belongings. “I remember when I alighted from the car, I noticed a group of people that included porters blocked my path and the next thing I know, I was arrested for the bullet planted in my baggage.”

Los Angeles-bound grandmother Araceli Fortuna was allegedly found carrying two caliber .45 bullets in her luggage.

Pasay City prosecutors ordered the immediate release of Tatad, Ocasiones and Fortuna after investigation and they were able to continue with their journey.

Source

Philippines: 700,000 Evacuated Due to Typhoon Nona

A chunk of those 700,000 evacuated are from the province of Albay, large-scale preventive evacuation are also done in Sorsogon. Typhoon Nona is expected to make landfall Monday evening. 

Typhoon Nona international name is Melor and may cause giant waves, floods, and landslides. Nona made landfall in Batag, Northern Samar, Monday morning, and was expected to hit land again in Sorsogon province in the evening.

The typhoon brushed the northern tip of Samar, a farming island of 1.5 million people early Monday, with winds gusting at 185 kilometers (115 miles) per hour, the state weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damages.

Samar was among areas devastated in 2013 by Typhoon Haiyan, when giant waves wiped out entire communities, leaving more than 10,000 people dead or missing.


In Albay province alone, almost 600,000 people were evacuated due to fears that heavy rains could cause mudslides on the slopes of nearby Mayon Volcano, according to the national disaster monitoring office. In Sorsogon, 130,000 people were also evacuated. Typhoon Nona is expected to cut across the country's central heartlands in the early hours of Tuesday, December 15, before heading out to the South China Sea in the west.

NBI report: "Laglag-bala" Scam is true, 2 OTS, 4 cops charged

MANILA - The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) report confirms that the laglag bala scam is real and it's happening not just on the imagination of the victims. The NBI has also filed criminal charges against several airport officers in connection with the arrest and detention of alleged "tanim-bala" modus victim Lane Michael White.

According to the American he was victimized by the bullet-planting modus upon his arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 4 (NAIA 4) last September 17.

Charged in a complaint filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) by the National Bureau of Investigation, on White's behalf, are Maria Elena Cena and Marvin Garcia of the Office for Transportation Security (OTS); and SPO2 Rolando A. Clarin, P/CINSP Adriano Junio, SPO4 Ramon Bernardo, and SPO2 Romy Navarro of the Philippine National Police-Aviation Security Group (PNP-AVSEGROUP).


Both Cena and Garcia was seen in the video footage taken by White's step-mother, they were the one who handled White's luggage at the X-ray machine area and called his attention for the alleged presence of a bullet in the luggage. Both are facing charges of robbery/extortion; violations of Republic Act (RA) No. 7438 (An Act Defining Certain Rights of Person Arrested, Detained or Under Custodial Investigation and Duties of the Arresting, Detaining and Investigating Officers) and RA No. 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act).

Clarin, Junio, Bernardino, and Navarro face charges for Violations of Article V, Section 38 (Liability for Planting Evidence) of RA No. 10591 (Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act); robbery/extortion; and violations of RA No. 7438 and RA No. 3019.

White and his stepmother, Filipina Eloisa Zoleta, are named as complainants of the case.

Based on their testimonies, the airport officers allegedly tried to extort P30,000 for the non-filing of charges against White.

December 8 Declared as Holiday in Batangas, Batac City, Antipolo City, Taguig City, and Agoo town

President Benigno Aquino III has declared December 8, Tuesday as a special non-working holiday in five areas to commemorate their foundation day.

The proclamation (Proclamation No. 1171 to 1175) declaring the five areas a special non-working day was signed by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. by the authority of President Benigno Aquino III.

December 8 was declared a holiday in the following areas:

Batangas province – 434th Foundation Day
Batac, Ilocos Norte – 438th Foundation Day
Antipolo City – 424th Foundation Day
Taguig City – 10th Foundation Day
Agoo, La Union province – 437th Foundation Day

Since it is a special non-working holiday, workers who report to their jobs will get 1.3 times of their daily rate while those who will not report to work will not get any pay.

Mass shooting in Southern California, Number of People Dead

** It was reported that one of the suspect is named Syed Farook.

 

At least 14 people were killed and 17 others wounded when gunmen opened fire at the Inland Regional Center Wednesday, triggering a massive manhunt that ended with two suspects dead after a high-speed police chase.

At least 14 people were killed and 17 others injured in a shooting at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, Calif., Wednesday.

Up to three gunmen opened fire inside the facility — which serves people with developmental disabilities — and fled in a dark SUV, police said.

Hours later, an SUV matching the description led police on high-speed chase during which shots were fired at police.

Two suspects — one male, one female — were killed during the police pursuit. Both wearing tactical gear and carrying assault rifles and handguns.

One officer was wounded and transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Another person, a male who was seen leaving the area, was taken into custody. It's unclear if that person was involved in the shooting earlier in the day.

The gunmen were armed with long guns and were wearing what appeared to be ski masks and vests, witnesses said.

“These were people who came prepared,” San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan told reporters. “They came in with a purpose, with an intent to do something.”

Burguan added: “We have no information at this point to indicate that this is terrorist-related, in the traditional sense that people may be thinking. Obviously, at a minimum, we have a domestic-terrorist-type situation.”

A suspicious device left at the center is "believed to be an explosive device," he said.
Officials are searching an apartment in Redlands, Calif., in a raid related to the rampage.
President Obama called for stricter gun control in the wake of the shootings.

It is believed to be the deadliest mass shooting in the United States since Sandy Hook.

 UPDATE: Suspect ID'd in San Bernardino Massacre as Syed Farook

Source: DailyBeast

Police officials have identified Syed Farook as one of the suspected shooters who attacked a center for the disabled in San Bernardino, California, according to NBC News. The Daily Beast has learned that the police have just executed a search warrant at a Redlands, California address—an address that belongs to Farook’s family.

Source: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/12/02/police-id-suspect-in-san-bernardino-massacre-as-syed-farook.html

2016 Presidential candidate Grace Poe Disqualified

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has disqualified Senator Grace Poe from the 2016 presidential election race. They said that she did not met the residency requirement of the Constitution for presidential candidates.

Comelec second division voted 3-0 in favor of the petition filed by lawyer Estrella Elamparo, who is seeking the cancellation of Poe's certificate of presidency for president.

Poe's running mate, Sen. Francis Escudero, confirmed this, saying he received the information 10 minutes ago. He did not provide additional details.

According to Elamparo, Poe failed to meet the 10-year residency requirement mandated by the Constitution for a presidential candidate.

The Comelec division said Poe became a resident only on July 2006 when she applied for dual citizenship. It said this would make her two months short of meeting the 10-year residency rule.

Meanwhile, Poe's lawyers insisted that she became a resident in May 2005.

Poe's camp said they will appeal the decision with the Comelec en banc.

Elamparo's petition was just one of the four petitions seeking to disqualify Poe from the presidential race.