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Senator Leila M. de Lima, who has been detained since 2017, wrote Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra asking him to review the illegal drugs cases filed against her after former Bureau of Corrections acting chief Rafael Marcos Z. Ragos and self-confessed drug lord Erwin Espinosa recanted their testimonies against the senator.  De Lima said in a letter to Guevarra dated …

With less than seven weeks before he steps down, President Rodrigo Duterte offered this advice to his successor: Just “stick with the rules” and continue the fight against corruption.  “There are rules everywhere to be followed. Just follow the rules,” the President said in an interview.  The Philippines will be relatively better in the coming years, but this could only be …

The Philippines will have a new US Ambassador after the US Senate confirmed the appointment of Mary Kay L. Carlson last May 6, 2022, replacing Kristie Kenny.  US President Joe Biden nominated Carlson for the post last February.  Prior to her nomination, Carlson served as deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy in India and Argentina.  She held the …

Mother’s Day is now included among special Filipino traditions because of that indelible mother-children relationships that could not be severed even by long overseas deployment.  So, what makes Mother’s Day special for Filipinos?  1. Mother’s Day in the Philippines should be in December  Starting the 1920’s, Mother’s Day was traditionally celebrated on the first Monday of December.  In 1980, former …

The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 15 million people died during COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2021, nearly triple the number of deaths officially attributed to the virus.  WHO’s estimate of the total pandemic deaths — including lives lost to its effects — puts the number on the broader impact of the crisis.  The figure gives a more realistic …

In the Philippines, Mother’s Day is celebrated with children and their fathers pampering the mothers the whole day, giving gifts – to show gratitude for mothers’ often thankless sacrifices for the family.  Historically, the celebration of Mother’s Day dates back to the era of early Romans and Greeks. At that time, they would celebrate the annual spring festival which they …

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte marked this year’s Labor Day celebration by inspecting the newly-constructed Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) Hospital, the country’s first state-of the-art medical facility dedicated for OFWs and their dependents. During his site inspection of the newly-built OFW Hospital, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said that the health facility is one of the government’s ways of thanking the OFWs …

A few months after unveiling the first two completed Multi-Purpose Evacuation Centers (MPECs) in Albay and Camarines Sur, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) returned to the Bicol region on April 28, 2022 to inaugurate three more newly-built facilities in Camarines Sur.  PAGCOR formally turned over the newly-built MPECs to the towns of San Jose, Tigaon and Ocampo, bringing …

Harnaaz Sandhu, winner of Miss Universe 2021, arrived in the Philippines last Sunday, April 24, 2022, where she held court at the Platinum Skies Hangar Domestic Airport Compound. Hosting the welcome were Narvacan City Mayor, Hon. Chavit Singson and Architect Richelle Singson-Michael, LCS Group Vice Chairperson, Ako Ilokano Ako Partylist first nominee, and Host Committee Chairperson of the 65th Miss …

The Philippines will need to prepare for the inevitable impact of the war in Ukraine should the crisis drag out, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).  Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III gave this determination to representatives of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank who Dominguez urged to craft “rescue packages” for economies that may be …