Philippine Asian News Today Vol 20 No 17 | Page 30

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PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY September 1 - 15 , 2018

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Trillanes : SC showed ‘ some semblance of independence ’

WHILE he did not get immediate relief from the Supreme Court , Sen . Antonio Trillanes IV yesterday welcomed the tribunal ’ s decision on his petition questioning the constitutionality of Proclamation 572 which nullified the amnesty granted to him by the previous administration .
“ This is a test case . The initial decision was a welcome development because it was also a show of their independence , so far ,” Trillanes told reporters in a press briefing outside his Senate office minutes after hearing the SC decision .
“ It was so carefully worded decision by the SC . We are grateful that they showed some semblance of independence . They could have outrightly dismissed the petition altogether ,” he also said .
Trillanes said that prior to the decision , the SC has been under heavy suspicion of being partial in favor of Duterte .
Meanwhile , Trillanes ’ colleagues in the minority bloc urged the Senate to look into the “ fraudulent and erroneous ” basis of Proclamation 572 .
In Senate Resolution 887 , Senators Franklin Drilon , Francis Pangilinan , Paolo Benigno Aquino IV , Leila
Typhoon ‘ Ompong ’ ( international name : Mangkhut ) may reach “ peak intensity ” on Thursday as it continues to inch closer to the Philippines , the state weather agency said Wednesday night .
According to the Philippine Atmospheric ,
Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration ’ s 11 p . m . weather bulletin , Ompong ’ s winds “ may
The National Food Authority ( NFA ) assures there will be no disruption in its intensified rice distribution and the delivery of other services as its administrator Jason Aquino goes on leave .
The NFA said several systems and operational procedures are in place and the management follows a hierarchy of leadership .
Although he is currently on leave , Aquino remains the head of the agency until a replacement is appointed by President Duterte , it added . Aquino
de Lima , and Risa Hontiveros said they hope an investigation will result in possible legislation that will “ prevent possible abuse of presidential powers .”
President Duterte , who signed Proclamation 572 on August 31 , said former Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin signed the order granting Trillanes amnesty to “ protect ” then President Benigno Aquino III .
He made the statement during a televised tête-à-tête with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo in Malacañang , but did not say why Aquino needed to be protected .
He has been saying it should be Aquino himself who should have signed the amnesty grant .
He also said he has yet to read the SC decision .
The Supreme Court yesterday denied Trillanes ’ plea for the issuance of a temporary restraining order or an injunction against Duterte ’ s proclamation which also ordered Trillanes ’ arrest . The tribunal noted Duterte ’ s “ categorical pronouncement ” that the opposition senator will not be apprehended , detained or taken into custody unless a warrant of arrest has been issued by the trial courts . It also said there was no “ extreme and urgent ” need to issue an injunctive relief because Duterte and the other respondents have acknowledged Trillanes ’ right to due process .
Trillanes said his camp will coordinate with the Armed Forces and the PNP to ensure they have the same interpretation of the SC decision .
If the PNP or the AFP would insist on arresting him , Trillanes said they may be cited in contempt by the SC . Nevertheless , he said , he will not resist .
He said he is ready to go home after taking a week-long refuge at the Senate building because of the threat of being arrested .
On the SC decision passing the factual side of his petition to the Makati courts , he said it “ gives us more space to summon the witnesses and subpoena the documents that they have .”
Duterte maintained that only the President can exercise the power of granting amnesty , which he said is like granting pardon which is an exercise of a power of the state .
Duterte added this made the grant of amnesty to Trillanes “ one of the glaring mistakes of the Aquino administration .”
“ The procedure was totally wrong in the sense that he ( Aquino ) just issued the proclamation , no particular names , it was a motherhood statement to cover the individual and any of the acts of the mutineers . Ang problema niyan , he designated Gazmin to investigate and there was a committee . And that committee came up with the resolution to grant amnesty . On that basis , Gazmin wrote to the President that they are recommending amnesty … after recommending , at the end of the narration , the narratives there , Gazmin signed the amnesty itself ,” he said .
He said Gazmin ’ s approval and signing of the amnesty was wrong “ because an act of pardon or amnesty

‘ Ompong ’ to reach ‘ peak intensity ’ Thursday

reach a peak intensity of 220 kph Thursday .”
The eye of Ompong was located 1,005 km East of Virac , Catanduanes as it moves West Northwest at 20 kph , PAGASA said in its bulletin .
It has maintained winds of up to 205 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 255 kph , it said
As it slowly heads for Luzon at its current direction , PAGASA estimates
Ompong will make landfall in the northern tip of Cagayan on Saturday .
“ The provinces of Catanduanes and Camarines Sur will experience the peripheral effects of Ompong within 36 hours , bringing occasional rains and gusty winds ,” PAGASA said .
Storm warning signal number 1 has already been raised in Catanduanes and Camarines Sur .
The provinces of Cagayan ,

NFA Aquino goes on leave asked to be relieved from his post .

The NFA said during a meeting with regional directors last week , Aquino instructed field officials to further intensify the distribution of rice to reach 15 to 20 percent market participation , so more consumers will benefit from the government ’ s subsidized rice priced at P27 and P32 per kilogram .
The agency is also preparing for Typhoon Mangkhut by activating various operations centers in affected regions to monitor the situation and provide quick response to any rice
WWW . PHILIPPINEASIANNEWSTODAY . COM is an act of state . It cannot be delegated to anybody but to the person or the president himself .”
Panelo and presidential spokesman Harry Roque echoed the President ’ s stand , saying the Supreme Court , in previous rulings , has said certain powers of the President cannot be delegated .
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the defense department has Trillanes ’ amnesty records , except for the application form the senator signed in January 2011 .
Lorenzana said copy of the documents were given to a staff of the Office of the Solicitor General on August 17 , a day after Solicitor General Jose Calida requested for documents relating to Trillanes ’ amnesty .
“ The records that came out of DND were Proclamation 75 and the amnesty documents signed by Secretary Gazmin . These were the records that the office of solgen got from us ,” said Lorenzana .
Proclamation 75 was issued by Aquino in November 2010 , granting amnesty to those involved in plots to overthrow the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo .
It was Gazmin who approved the recommendation of a DND-AFP ad hoc committee that processed Trillanes ’ application . He also issued a certificate of amnesty to Trillanes and to the other grantees .
Proclamation 572 , while signed on August 31 , was made public on September 4 . ( BY JP LOPEZ AND JOCELYN MONTEMAYOR , Malaya )
lsabela , Aurora , Quirino , Polillo Islands , Camarines Norte and Albay will also likely be under signal number 1 Thursday morning .
Schools throughout Luzon have already suspended classes for Thursday and Friday ahead of Ompong ’ s arrival . ( M . Santos , PS ) needs for relief operations .
The NFA also announced that the Plant Quarantine Service ( PQS ) of the Bureau of Plant Industry ( BPI ) in Central Luzon has cleared the 132,400 bags rice shipments docked at the Subic Bay Freeport from weevil infestation after it was fumigated .
Ronnie Manuel , PQS regional manager , has issued the certification that the rice shipment from Thailand is now fit for human consumption after it was treated by SSI Chemical Applications , Inc ., a BPI accredited fumigator .
Prior to the issuance of the clearance , the NFA said rice samples were randomly taken from the cargo holds of MV Gazi for inspection , examination and sensory evaluation which passed quality specifications and standards .
If the weather permits , unloading of the rice shipment is expected to resume today , September 13 , for delivery to warehouses .
The 132,400 bags rice shipment is part of the 160,000 bags allocated for distribution in Central Luzon to beef up the inventory of NFA warehouses in Nueva Ecija , Pampanga , Bulacan , Zambales , Tarlac , Bataan and Aurora . ( J . Macapagal , Malaya )