Radio commentators apologize to Lambinos

By Gabriel L. Cardinoza

DAGUPAN CITY -- Veteran radio commentators Orlando Navarro and Tito Tamayo had apologized to former presidential adviser for northern Luzon Secretary Raul Lambino, his wife, former Mangaldan town mayor Mary Marilyn Lambino, and their family for airing and commenting on the alleged cases against them for rape, maltreatment, and physical injuries.
    In a joint letter of apology furnished The Manila Times on Thursday, November 23, Navarro and Tamayo offered their "sincere and profound apology" to the Lambino family for their commentaries last year.
    "After review and verification, there are no actual cases against them that are in progress in any court of law or in the Office of the Ombudsman. These allegations against the family of Lambino are clear fabrications and fake news," Navarro and Tamayo said.
    "It is indeed with great compunction on our part that we had made the statements, remarks or comments regarding said cases during our radio and Facebook programs without prior verification about the truth or falsity thereof," they added.
    Navarro and Tamayo acknowledged that they had caused damage and prejudice to the honor and person of the Lambino family in making such statements, remarks or comments.
    "We are extending our repenting stance to the family of Lambino and undertake not to commit the same transgression upon the honor and person of anybody," Navarro and Tamayo said.
    They also attested to the integrity and propriety in public service of the Lambino family and to the humility, decency and respect they have shown in their private dealings.
    "We humbly apologize," Navarro said.

Read more...

‘Disputes with media should be settled in court’/ Confidential funds

  
EDITORIAL

Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) Chief Persida Acosta on Tuesday urged that disputes with the media should be settled in court instead of through bloodshed.
    “Meron mga nasasagasaan ang ating mga kasama sa media na talaga namang may impluwensiya, may kapangyarihan, may kayamanan, at ang kanilang nagiging result ay ikli ng buhay ng ating mga kasama (There are media practitioners who clash with influential, powerful, or rich individuals, and this results in shortened lives),” Acosta told a media summit at Bayview Park Hotel in Manila.
    She said however that there are laws in place and effective legal processes for those who have grudges against journalists as well as public servants.
    “Bigyan natin ng pagkakataon ang rule of law and justice. Daanin sa proseso. At kaugnay nito, kailangan po ang mga pag-aaral po ng ating mga kasama sa media ng batas upang maiwasan ang galit at bangis ng mga nasasagasaan (Let’s give a chance to the rule of law and justice. Let’s go through the process. And with this, our media practitioners should also study the law to avoid the ire of those being imputed)” Acosta said.
    Among some of the common lawsuits filed against journalists are cyber-libel or libel under the revised penal code, she was quoted by the government-run Philippine News Agency.
        In a separate speech, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Assistant Secretary Michel Andre Del Rosario said a “free and responsible press” in the country is a “cornerstone of any democracy.”
    “It is through the diligent and courageous work of our journalists, that we are kept informed, enlightened, and engaged in the affairs of our nation,” he said.
    The media summit organized by the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS), with the theme "Promoting a free and responsible press towards a safer media community" is part of the government’s efforts to address violence against journalists.
    “It is our solemn duty to address these issues head-on and ensure that those who seek to silence the press are brought to justice,” Del Rosario said.
    Senior media practitioners, lawyers, and legal experts discussed several topics during the event to educate participating journalists on the present condition of the country’s media landscape.
    The PTFoMS - through the PAO and the Puno and Puno Law Offices – also held a free legal aid clinic for journalists during the latter part of the event.
    PTFoMS executive director, Undersecretary Paul Gutierrez, said the summit is only the beginning of a series of events organized for media practitioners.
    He said succeeding legs of the event will be held in the Davao Region, Tagaytay City for the Southern Luzon leg, and in Subic for the Central Luzon leg. 

EDITORIAL
Confidential funds

One of the controversial issues now engulfing the country is confidential funds. This, after Vice President Sarah Duterte insisted on having such funds for the Education department which she heads which doesn’t involve national security.
    She wanted a P500 million confidential fund for the Office of the Vice President. Granted.
    She wanted a separate P150 million confidential fund for the Department of Education which she also heads. Pointedly questioned about it by Arlene Brosas (Gabriela), France Castro (ACT Teachers) and Raoul Manuel (Kabataan), she just said matter-of-factly that security and surveillance work – never before part of DepEd’s functions because why would the department need money for this when there is an acute classroom shortage that was not addressed during her father’s term? – was necessary to handle “specific issues and challenges.” Granted again.
    Taking cue from this, the Dept. of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) also requested a confidential fund worth P300 million worth of confidential and intelligence funds (CIF) for fiscal year 2024 to combat scammers, according to Sec. Ivan Uy said on Wednesday.
    In a Malacañang Press Briefing, Uy explained that the confidential fund is necessary to conduct intelligence and investigations to apprehend cyber criminals.
    Confidential funds pertain to costs associated with surveillance operations within non-military government organizations to assist the agency’s mission or functions.
    The DICT chief expressed concern over scammers using multiple tactics to evade being identified and apprehended.
    Uy said these criminals are well-funded, well-organized, and highly technical.
    Hence, he said that DICT needs to match them with the appropriate government capabilities.
 “Our hands are tied without the proper tools, and many of these tools and methods require confidential funds to be implemented,” Uy said.
    The DICT says that it is working with law enforcement agencies to crack down on cybercrime.
    However, Uy said that the confidential fund will allow the DICT to take a more proactive approach to combating these crimes.
     “We need to be able to gather intelligence and conduct investigations without being hampered by red tape,” Uy said. “The confidential fund will allow us to do that,” he added.
    Joint Circular No. 2015-01, issued on January 8, 2015, by the Commission on Audit and four other government entities, prescribes the guidelines for the utilization and audit of intelligence and confidential funds.
    According to records from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the combined allocation for confidential and intelligence funds for the upcoming year amounts to P10.142 billion.
    The DBM noted that this figure represents an increase of P120 million compared to the P10.02 billion allocated for the Confidential and Intelligence Funds (CIF) in 2023.
    It is now becoming a trend among government agencies and even local government units to haggle for confidential funds which they will use according to their whims without being accountable for it.
    There needs to be more stringent rules on use of taxpayers’ money like what those in government call confidential funds.

EDITORIAL

Changing abusive, inept corrupt barangay officials

The filing of certificates of candidacy for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections has lapsed. Now, the first BSKE since 2018 will be held and changing abusive, inept and corrupt barangay officials is now possible.
After multiple postponements that effectively extended the terms of village and youth council officials, the BSKE will finally push through in October.
    This was after the Supreme Court struck down the latest postponement, through Republic Act 11935, as a “grave violation of the Constitution” and “unduly arbitrary or oppressive of the electorates’ right of suffrage.”
    The gift of a term extension has been widely seen as either a reward or a way of wooing the support of officials at the smallest unit of government.
    The gift is typically granted by Congress and Malacañang shortly before or after general and midterm elections.
    As the Supreme Court pointed out, however, “the free and meaningful exercise of the right to vote, as protected and guaranteed by the Constitution, requires the holding of genuine periodic elections, which must be held at intervals which are not unduly long, and which ensure that the authority of government continues to be based on the free expression of the will of electors.”
    With the BSKE finally pushing through this year, voters should take the time to get to know the aspirants for posts that directly affect governance in their communities.
    People should remember how the incumbent officials performed during the Covid lockdowns, when several faced criminal and administrative complaints in connection with the distribution of various forms of pandemic ayuda or assistance.
    During the Duterte administration, several barangay captains were also indicted for drug-related offenses.
    Voters should also consider the performance of incumbent officials in making their communities business-friendly.     Barangays are empowered to collect certain types of fees for various enterprises and services including for the use of farm equipment. Enterprises from micro to large have complained about the immense amount of red tape and redundant fees imposed by barangays across the country. Even plain folks have been victimized by abusive barangay officials who wielded their power to harass.
    With the filing of COCs, voters can consider how aspirants conduct their campaigns. Those who violate election rules, starting with the display of campaign materials, cannot be expected to play fair and provide honest public service.
    Good governance must be promoted at the grassroots. After several postponements, voters now have a chance to make this possible by electing into office deserving candidates. 
 
 
 

Read more...

CHR says cyberlibel used to suppress press freedom

Baguio journalist’s conviction 

By Leander C. Domingo

EXPRESSING concern on how cyberlibel has been used to suppress press freedom, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said the conviction of a Baguio City-based journalist is the most recent case of a pattern of legal actions targeting critics of the government.
    Journalist Frank Cimatu was convicted of cyberlibel over charges filed by former Agriculture secretary Emmanuel "Manny" Piñol in 2017, for a reportedly libelous Facebook post in connection with the avian flu crisis.
    In a statement, the CHR also expressed concern about how cyberlibel has been used to threaten the right to free expression. It reminded the Philippine government that as a State party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), it must protect the people's rights to freedom of opinion and expression.
    "When these rights are compromised, especially for journalists and critics, the government also cripples one of its informal feedback mechanisms that serve to inform and improve government policies and decisions," the CHR said.
    The CHR also urged legislators to process Senate Bill (SB) 1593, which seeks to decriminalize libel. It agrees that "libel laws have been used and abused by private parties to advance their various interests, and by public personalities to shield themselves from public scrutiny, even on matters of public concern."

Read more...

Bill on media workers’ welfare/ City council sets extensive review of Baguio Charter

BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred P. Dizon

With the passage on final reading at the House of Representatives of the bill on Media Workers’ Welfare Act, the Commission on Human Rights said it is looking forward to a “more open and consultative climate” between government and journalists in the country.
    The CHR said with enactment into law of House Bill No. 454, the government and journalists will be able to better explore and create responsive solutions to needs and challenges faced by the media — from basic social security and welfare benefits to medical insurance, and death benefits for the family should a media worker die in the line of duty.
    “The CHR has long since stood in solidarity with the media community and called for substantive legislation that will foster a healthy media environment, where workers are not only able to conduct their duty without fear of intimidation, violence, or reprisals, but also boost their collective morale,” the CHR said in a statement.
    On top of the benefits, the CHR also cited the bill’s measure on responsibilities that should be shouldered by media workers, since this will bolster the culture of due diligence and truth-telling.
    “The Commission similarly looks forward to the proposed creation of a News Media Tripartite Council under the bill, which will serve as a platform for dialogue between media workers and their employers,” it said.
    “Such will be an exercise of freedom of expression wherein parties can have the opportunity to discuss issues on labor concerns as well as the development of the media industry,” it also said.
    At the same time, the CHR called for the enactment of support for community media and publications that may lack funding to implement the bill’s provisions.
    The CHR said it hopes the bill will promote press freedom, democracy, and human rights in the country.
    “We look forward to a more open and consultative climate between the government and journalists in the country to better explore and appropriate responsive solutions to challenges faced in practice and on the ground,” it said.
   ***
All this, even as not only media groups are pushing decriminalization of the Libel Law. Media workers say it is being used by government officials among others to “terrorize” or “tame” their ranks like what happened to our long-time peer Frank Cimatu. 
   ***
The Baguio City Council’s committee on laws, human rights, and justice conducted a preliminary meeting to lay the groundwork for extensive review of the Revised Baguio City Charter (Republic Act No. 11689), Jordan G. Habbiling, information staff of the Baguio City Council bared.  
    Councilor Peter Fianza, chairperson of the committee, reportedly said the first step is to conduct a massive information dissemination campaign to get the public involved in this endeavor.
    Fianza said it is important to let stakeholders understand the need to thoroughly examine the provisions of RA No. 11689 which lapsed into law on April 11, 2022. 
    Different stakeholders including members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, barangay officials, indigenous peoples groups in the city, and scholars in the academe will be furnished copies of the Revised City Charter, Habbiling said.
    They will be advised to write their position papers to be consolidated and studied by the city council. A series of consultations will also be held to solicit public opinion.
    Habbiling said joining Fianza in the preliminary meeting were Councilors Jose Molintas, Fred Bagbagen, Elmer     Datuin, Arthur Allad-iw, and Mylen Victoria yaranon who expressed willingness to be part of the working group tasked to facilitate public consultations and consolidation of people’s comments and suggestions.
    This is reportedly part of the effort of the city council to correct certain provisions of the Revised City Charter after its failed attempt to convince former President Rodrigo Duterte to veto the bill.
In its resolution requesting for the veto on House Bill No. 8882, the city council enumerated some critical points.
    The resolution pointed out “ambiguity” of territorial boundaries of the city as indicated in Section 3 of the bill. It claimed this section does not indicate exact metes and bounds of the City of Baguio which is supposed to be a “vital provision” of the city charter.
    It said there is a need to include a provision in the charter containing the definite metes and bounds of the city, taking into consideration the city’s land disputes with the adjoining municipalities.
    The resolution also assailed the bill for stating that the sales shall go to the coffers of the national government. Under the original city charter, the said proceeds shall be remitted to the City Treasury Office to finance the A.O 504 Clearing Committee for the processing of clearances of applications for land titling.
    Likewise, the resolution claimed that the bill would undermine Resolution 362-1994 which contains the 19 conditionalities set by the city government in the formulation of the Master Development Plan for Camp John Hay to be complied with by the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA).
    The resolution said a plebiscite must be conducted to involve the people of Baguio CIty, considering revisions are “substantial.”
    Lastly, the resolution raised concern on “discrepancy” between the new city charter and the Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992 on the land area of the Camp John Hay Reservation.
    The councilors said another important concern that needs to be addressed is the issue on ancestral lands and ancestral domains in the city.
    Earlier, the city council urged the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples-Cordillera Administrative Region (NCIP-CAR) to examine RA No. 11689 and find out whether its provisions support the processing of ancestral land titles in the city or “erase” the rights of the Indigenous Peoples to their ancestral domain. 
    The schedule for the first official public consultation will be announced soon, Habbiling said.

Read more...

Libel confronts journalists Cimatu and Piñol

LETTERS FROM THE AGNO

March L. Fianza

With the decision by Quezon City RTC Branch 93 Acting Presiding Judge Evangeline Cabochan-Santos on the cyber libel charge filed by former journalist Manny Piñol against fellow journalist Frank Cimatu over a Facebook post, all the more that the old libel law and the cyber libel law became hazy.
    A libel case was filed against our media colleague Frank for his Facebook post “Agri Sec got rich by 21 M in 6 months. Bird flu pa more.” The person who thinks he was the “Agri Sec” alluded to in the FB post was former journalist Piñol.
    Before becoming a Mindanao politician, he was a sports columnist with the Tempo tabloid newspaper. Sec. Piñol was gearing up to run for senator in the 2022 election after the FB post was published. Maybe the situation could have been less serious if he was not going to be a senatorial bet and the post did not appear on FB.
    The old libel law is in the Revised Penal Code (RPC) and calls for a lesser penalty while cyber libel under RA 10175 is punished with a higher penalty. There is a big difference depending on the circumstances.
    If the libel is committed with the use of ICTs (information and communications technologies) or internet, it will fall as cyber libel under RA 10175 which has increased the penalty.
     However, committing libel under any circumstances, with or without the use of the internet or ICTs which increased the penalty of the crime would still be prosecuted under the terms of the RPC.
I read somewhere that libel is a crime against honor. That depends on whether the person or entity being libeled is “honorable” or has an honor to protect. That court should study that. It is also defined as the “public and malicious imputation of a crime, or of a vice or defect, real or imaginary...”
    Libel is an “act, omission, condition, status or circumstance that can cause the dishonor, discredit or contempt of a natural or juridical person, or to blacken the memory of one who is dead.”
     All the elements of libel under the RPC would determine the filing of charges. If one element is lacking, the crime of libel would not exist. Thus, for libel to be sustained, all the components of libel must be present. Not all the elements in Frank’s case were present!
     The case at hand puts to test the applicability of the penalties under the RPC and RA 10175. The libel cases under the two circumstances could be scrutinized by the public. Under the RPC, what is involved are well written journalistic articles and broadcasted news reports and commentaries that do not get instant feedback and comments.
     Furthermore, libel cases under the RPC include filing of charges against newspaper publishers and editors, including the circulation managers, radio/TV station managers, not only the writers. This proves that the outfits have the accountability and system of fact-checking information released to the public.
     On the other hand, socmed posts on the internet even while they contain five words, more or less, are commented on by the public as quickly as when these were posted. This brings more embarrassment to the personalities involved.
     The situation calls on lawmakers to reconsider amending the cyber libel law and to include in the charge sheets the platform where the allegedly libelous statement was posted such as FB, Instagram, Viber, twitter, etc. The platform owners should equally be accountable.
    To calm down the nerves of journalists, both situations found under the RPC and RA 10175 has to be restudied and may be considered to be decriminalized under separate conditions for respectable journalists who can account for their work.
     This is one instance where lawmakers become selective in their work because they have to distinguish between journalists who have a system of editing information and people who want to do media work on the internet and criticize without basis.
    The law, if crafted, could prevent responsible media workers from serving jail. Decriminalizing libel under the RPC and RA 10175 could be done on the condition that criminal liabilities should not totally be removed as it could be abused. There should be accountability in free speech.

Read more...

Baguio journalist appeals to reverse libel conviction

BAGUIO CITY -- Multi-awarded journalist-writer Frank Cimatu, who was convicted for cyber libel by a Quezon City Court is set to file an appeal this week to overturn his conviction.  
    In 2017, Cimatu posted on Facebook that then Agriculture Sec. Emmanuel Piñol, previously a 3-term governor of Cotabato province and former sportswriter of Tempo allegedly amassed P21 million within six months following the bird flu outbreak in Central Luzon.
    “Agri Sec got rich by 21 M in 6 months. Bird Flu pa more,” Cimatu, editor of Baguio Chronicle and stringer of Rappler, posted, prompting Piñol to file a cyber libel case against him.
    Various media and nongovernment groups including fellow journalists came to the defense of Cimatu, who was sentenced to a minimum jail term of six months and one day to a maximum of five years, five months and 11 days.
    He was also ordered to pay Piñol ₱300,000 in moral damages.
    In a 19-page decision, Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 93 Presiding Judge Evangeline Cabochan-Santos found Cimatu “guilty beyond reasonable doubt” of cyber libel charges under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
    The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said it was saddened by the court ruling convicting Cimatu, noting it sees no malice in the newsman’s September 24, 2017 Facebook post.
    “With due respect to the local court’s decision, NUJP maintains that the right to free expression and press freedom is paramount especially when exercised in relation to public officials,” it said.
    NUJP reiterated its position that libel laws should be decriminalized, saying “these are not compatible with the Bill of Rights stated in the Philippine Constitution and with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, of which the Philippines is a state party.”
    But Piñol said the NUJP must also realize that “the exercise of our rights is not absolute and that we are accountable for any transgression on and violation of the rights of others.”
    In a separate Facebook post, Piñol said that press freedom does not give journalists license to slander, dishonor and destroy people.
    “Criminalizing libel ensures accountability,” he added.
    Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed grave concern over Cimatu’s conviction.
“    The cyber-libel conviction of journalist Frank Cimatu is extremely concerning and highlights the precariousness of freedom of expression in the Philippines,” Carlos Conde, HRW Philippines senior researcher, said in a statement.
    The verdict came just a few days after civil society activist Sarah Dekdeken of the Cordillera Peoples Alliance was convicted of the same offense.
    These rulings underscore the need to decriminalize both libel and cyber-libel and make these matters of civil, not criminal, law, Conde said.
    “Criminal libel is an assault on democracy and freedom of expression. No one should spend a single day in jail for simply expressing an opinion or reporting the news,” he said.
    Cimatu vowed to fight his case through the upper courts.
    Baguio-based media groups Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters’ Club and the Kordilyera Media-Citizen Council said it “found the court’s decision unfortunate, but we consider it a temporary setback in our continuing fight to defend press freedom.”
    “Cimatu’s conviction over a Facebook post does not only adversely impact on journalists, but also on the public who air critical views on issues affecting society,” they said. “No citizen of the free world should be threatened from expressing their views; more so if these are done pursuant to their roles as watchdog of the government.”
    “As we push for responsible reportage, we will continue upholding press freedom and every citizen’s right to freedom of expression, which are the cornerstone of a democratic governance,” they said.
    The Baguio Writers Group (BWG) condemned the use of cyber libel law against Cimatu, who is also a poet and essayist.
    Cimatu previously served as BWG president.
    Human rights alliance Karapatan also assailed Cimatu’s conviction.
    Cimatu’s post was based on a previous report from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism showing that Piñol’s net worth rose by a “fantastic P21,956,632.23,” from P3,643,000 in 2009 to P25,599,632.23 in December 2016 based on his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.
    Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said, “The fact that Frank Cimatu was convicted for cyberlibel merely for expressing his opinion shows how the country’s cyberlibel laws can be dangerously used as a weapon for media repression.”
 

 

Read more...

‘Attacks on journalists with impunity must not become normal’

EDITORIAL

Attacks on journalists with impunity “must not thrive and be a part of the normal,” Senator Grace Poe said Thursday.
    Poe lauded the media for exercising their “hard-won right to free speech in their day-to-day work,” which she said, they “zealously guard and vigorously defend.”
    But she noted that in the pursuit of defending a free press in the country, many journalists “have fallen by the wayside.”
“Without a doubt, the harassment and killing of journalists have compromised our collective pursuit of truth,” Poe said at a Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas conference in Tagaytay.
    The senator made an impassioned call to clamp down impunity for journalist attacks and harassment, as she said “every incident of murder, threat or harassment against the media should not be relegated to the already jarring statistics.”
    “Impunity stays as a serious challenge, it must not thrive and be part of the normal,” she added.
    Poe said this in light of the brazen assassination of veteran radio broadcaster Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa, who was ambushed and killed in Las Piñas City on Oct. 3.
    And as twists and turns continue to unravel in the Mabasa slay case, Poe said the string of suspects implicated in the crime must be pursued by authorities.
    “Our authorities must not stop until they fully untangle the plot and uncover the brains behind this baleful act,” she further noted, citing the recent directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to continue with the investigation.
    Poe called on lawmakers, journalists and other stakeholders to adapt to the digitalization of the media landscape.
    “Where before it was a small corps of journalists that broke the news, today, anyone with a Facebook account or a Youtube channel has a bullhorn at his or her disposal,” she explained.
    With this, she urged them to use online platforms in a bid to responsibly inform and shape opinions, while remaining rooted to delivering the truth and demanding accountability.
    The Philippines, for the third straight year, ranked seventh in the world’s worst countries in prosecuting killers of journalists, according to global media watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
    The CPJ cited the murder of Lapid and radio host Renato Blanco, who were both killed during the first 100 days of the Marcos administration.

Read more...

Commemorating 35th founding month of CAR

EDITORIAL

The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) is commemorating its month-long 35th founding anniversary which started with a kickoff program in Sagada, Mountain Province last July 1.
    The theme for this year’s celebration is “One Autonomous Cordillera: Ensuring Social Development and Inclusive Growth in the New Normal.”
    With Mountain Province as host, Gov. Bonifacio Lacwasan said they were ready to welcome everyone joining the festivities. Lacwasan said he was optimistic autonomy in the Cordillera will be realized under the Marcos administration.
    Co-chairman for the celebration, the Regional Development Council-Regional Social Development Committee chaired by Department of Social Welfare and Development-CAR Director Arnel Garcia, said various events were being ironed out to form part of the simple yet meaningful event.
    On July 15, 1987, President Corazon Aquino issued Executive Order No. 220 creating the CAR as a special temporary administrative region while waiting for ongoing efforts for the establishment of an autonomous region.
    CAR is composed of Apayao, Abra, Benguet, Mountain Province, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Baguio City. Two Organic Acts were earlier presented to Cordillera constituents to make the Cordillera autonomous but these were rejected.     This time autonomy proponents are hoping regional autonomy would be achieved under the Marcos Administration.  

SEC orders closure of Rappler

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa announced the Securities and Exchange Commission has ordered the closure of online news organization Rappler.
    Ressa shared the information as she spoke at the East-West Center International media conference in Hawaii.
According to Ressa, the SEC has affirmed its earlier decision to revoke the certificates of incorporation of Rappler & Rappler Holding Corporation.
    “Ïn an order date June 28, our Securities and Exchange Commission affirmed its earlier decision to revoke the certificate of incorporation of Rappler Inc and Rappler Holdings Corporation. We were notified by our lawyers of this ruling that effectively confirmed the shutdown of Rappler. We are entitled to appeal this decision and will do so, especially since the proceedings were highly irregular,” Rappler said in a statement.
    News organizations like the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said they stood with Rappler and its journalists and staff as the government moves to shut down the independent news site over issues with its Securities and Exchange Commission registration.
    “The order to shut Rappler down comes on the heels of the National Telecommunications Commission's moves to block alternative news sites Bulatlat and Pinoy Weekly and to regulate blocktime broadcasting arrangements and contributes more uncertainty to the media landscape in the Philippines.
    “Throughout the six years of the Duterte administration, we have seen lawsuits and regulatory processes used as tools to muzzle the press and these, as much as the touted infrastructure projects, form part of the Duterte legacy.
    “It is clear now, if it had not been clear before, that the journalism community and the communities that we report about and for must stand together against government moves to harass, restrict and silence any of us to keep the press free for all of us,” the NUJP said.
 

Read more...

Publishers: Relocation of newsstands bane to info despite online age

BAGUIO CITY – Publishers in this summer capital said the proposed relocation of newsstands in this summer capital would greatly decrease circulation of newspapers and deprive local folk of easier accessibility to news.
    They said Baguio residents, as in other parts of the Cordillera, over the years, particularly those in their middle ages and the elderly, relied on local newspapers to keep abreast of the times, even in this age of social media.
    It is also local newspapers where legal notices from the courts are published and stakeholders need to be informed about their cases, they said.      
    This, as Gloria Antoinette Hamada, publisher and chief operating officer of the Baguio Midland Courier, appealed to the city government to lay bare its concrete plan for the proposed relocation of newsstands in the city, especially those located in the central business district.
    During the city council’s regular session last Monday, Hamada requested a meeting with the City Planning and Development Office and the Permits and Licensing Division under the City Mayor’s Office to discuss what the city government has in store for the newsstands. 
    She lamented the effects of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic to the newspaper vendors and local publishers, saying relocation of newsstands will further disadvantage them. 
    “The number of newspaper deliverers has gone down from almost a hundred to only less than 30. This [relocation of newsstands] will further affect not only their livelihood but also Midland which is one of the local newspapers trying to recover from this pandemic,” she said. According to her, she attempted to convince establishments to accommodate newsstands within their premises, but only a few were willing.
    In a public consultation attended by journalists, publishers, general managers of newspaper organizations, newspaper vendors, and watch repairmen in December 2020, the city government decided to allow these vending stands in the central business district to stay in their current locations from January to June 2021 while plans for their relocation had yet to be finalized.
    The city government proposed vending structures would be relocated either within the premises of establishments willing to accommodate them or in spaces that may be identified by the city government after the conduct of a survey.
    In areas where the stands may be relocated, a .6-meter setback from the sidewalk must be observed so as to keep customers from blocking or clogging the sidewalk, allowing the smooth flow of pedestrians.
    The six-month period given in December 2020 to newspaper vendors for the relocation of their vending stands was extended four times by virtue of resolutions passed by the city council.
    With the appeal for formulation of a concrete plan, the city council yet again passed another resolution requesting the executive department to extend the said period.
    The city council likewise invited the City Planning and Development Office to attend the regular session on June 20 to give an update on the proposed plan to relocate the newsstands.  – With a report from Jordan G. Habbiling

Read more...

Benguet court junks libel rap vs 2 journalists filed by ex-Cordi PNP chief

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- The Regional Trial Court here dismissed a cyberlibel charge filed by a retired police general against two staff members of an online alternative news site for “insufficient evidence.”
    The case against Northern Dispatch (Nordis) editor Kimberlie Ngabit Quitasol and her reporter Khim Abalos stemmed from the articles the two wrote in April 2020 about farmers and other groups denouncing former Cordillera police director Brig. Gen. R’win Pagkalinawan for his alleged directive to shoot “communist organizers” who organized people during the Luzon-wide lockdown related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
    Pagkalinawan accused Quitasol and Abalos of putting him in a bad light by allegedly “deliberately omitting” a part of his statement, which was premised only on the probability that a communist organizer would retaliate violently against a police officer.
    But in an April 22 decision released on Monday, RTC Judge Jennifer Humiding of Branch 63 here dismissed the case after the prosecution “failed to prove the existence of all the elements of libel.”
    She concluded that the prosecution established that the retired police official did make the statement in a Viber discussion with a SunStar Baguio reporter who posted the initial report online.
    “The imputation of a statement he actually made — also in a manner bearing the same import with the one made by [the SunStar reporter] which bears his stamp of approval — dismisses actual malice and knowledge of any falsehood,” the judge said.
    Humiding said “the truth of the statement made was actually established by the evidence and during the trial.”
    Pagkalinawan has yet to issue a statement on the ruling.
    Nordis on Monday welcomed the court’s dismissal of the cyberlibel charges against Quitasol and Abalos.
    Quitasol is also the Inquirer’s Baguio and Benguet correspondent.
    “The court’s decision affirms our commitment to truthful reporting and the public good,” Nordis said.

Read more...

Ex-newsman in arrest of mayor, nabbed for guns

By Alvin Murcia

MAPANDAN, Pangasinan -- Operatives from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested here a former correspondent of a daily broadsheet for illegal possession of firearms during a raid conducted in his two-story house.
    The suspect, identified as Jaime Aquino, was nabbed following implementation of search warrant by Judge Rusty M. Naya of branch 51 Tayug, Pangsinan Regional Trial Court.
    Authorities discovered one piece of cal. 45 (SN: 770001), eight pieces live ammunition and two hand grenade.
    Aquino and the illegal firearms were brought by the NBI-National Capital Region.
    The search warrant was issued by Executive Judge Naya after the applicant satisfied the requirement that Aquino was in possession of firearms and ammunition of different calibre in his two-story house located here at Caimito Extension Road, Barangay Aserda.
    This is not the first time that the former correspondent was involved in a controversy.
    Previously, an incumbent municipal councilor of Lopez town in Quezon province disclosed a supposed group led by Aquino was targeting Quezon province Gov. Danilo Suarez and his family.
    Lopez municipal councilor Arkie Manuel Yulde — who was recently incarcerated for six months on trumped up charges of kidnapping, rape and serious illegal detention — said that he was also a victim of the group.
    Three cases of rape and kidnapping were filed by Aquino’s group against Yulde before the Pasig, Quezon City and Pangasinan courts.
    Yulde was released last Feb. 9, 2022 when the fiscals handling his cases were replaced as per the order of the Department of Justice as investigation showed evidence submitted in court were all fake that included the complainant and medical certificate in connection with the rape case.
    The councilor added Aquino and his cohorts were allegedly planning to file trumped up cases against Suarez and his family as part of their grand plan to derail the political plan of their group in the May 9, 2022 elections.

Read more...

Mayor files libel cases vs 3 Dagupan broadcasters

By Leander C. Domingo

DAGUPAN CITY -- Three radio broadcasters here are facing multiple counts of libel and cyberlibel charges filed by the mayor of the municipality of Mangaldan in Pangasinan.
    Mangaldan town Mayor Marilyn de Guzman-Lambino was accompanied by her counsel, lawyer Joseph Frianeza, when she filed the complaint before the City Prosecutor's Office here on March 8.
    The respondents in the libel case filed by de Guzman-Lambino are radio commentators Joel Balolong of DWCM Aksyon Radyo 1161 AM, Tito Tamayo of DWIZ 89.3 FM and Dennis Mojares of DWJE 88.1 FM.
    The libel cases stemmed from the "malicious" and "brutal" commentaries of the broadcasters when Lambino and her husband, lawyer Raul Lambino, were accused of rape, child abuse and physical injuries before the Office of the Ombudsman on Jan. 4, 2022 by allegedly fictitious complainants.
    De Guzman-Lambino's husband is the presidential adviser for Northern Luzon and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority administrator and chief executive officer.
    The Lambinos sought the help of the Dept. of Justice and other law enforcement authorities to unmask the true identities of the complainants and later discovered that the mother and daughter are inexistent and fictitious.
    The three broadcasters reportedly discussed extensively in their respective radio programs the "fabricated rape" issue, including personal tirades that allegedly besmirched the reputation of the Lambino couple.
    "This is just the initial list of broadcasters as there are more newsmen in Pangasinan and in Metro Manila who are set to face libel and cyberlibel charges," Frianeza said.

Read more...

NUJP assails Baguio journalist’s slay try

By Mar T. Supnad

BAGUIO CITY — The National Union of Journalists here and Benguet condemned the slay attempt Tuesday on Aldwin Quitasol, president of the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club, the biggest media organization in Cordillera. 
    Quitasol, who traces his roots in Tadian, Mountain Province, is also correspondent of the Daily Tribune, a national daily.
    Unidentified individuals aboard a motorcycle shot Quitasol Tuesday around 10 p.m. while traversing an unlit portion of the 2nd Road Quezon Hill here.
    Quitasol threw himself to the ground when he heard gunfire and the assailant sped past him.
     “This is vile act of violence and cowardice. An attack on one is an attack on all of us and an assault to press freedom and the people’s right to know everywhere,” said the NUJP in a statement. “We call on authorities of Baguio City to immediately probe the incident and ensure the safety of Quitasol and his family.”
    “We also urge city officials, the police, and the national government to safeguard press freedom by protecting journalists and media workers from any form of attack,” it added.

The group said attacks against journalists in Baguio and Benguet continue to intensify.

The regional Commission on Human is set to look into the incident even as Quitasol earlier blottered the incident at the city police station where he talked with city police director Col. Glenn Lonogan about the matter.

City police are reportedly investigating the incident.

Quitasol and his wife Kimberlie, who writes for the Philippines Daily Inquirer have reportedly been “red-tagged” by the regional police office under then regional police director Brig. Gen. R’win Pagkalinawan, the husband of CNN Philippines news anchor Pia Hontiveros.

Read more...

PCOO kicks off FOI campaign in Benguet as Phl ‘pilot area’

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet --The Presidential Communications Operations Office through the Freedom of Information Program Management Office started the barangay FOI  campaign at the  Benguet Provincial Capitol  here on June 28. 
    PCOO Undersecretary and FOI program director Kristian Ablan and Asec  Marie Rafael led launching with  an FOI orientation among stakeholders and   turnover  of Barangay FOI Kiosk and  information materials to Gov. Melchor Diclas with Board Members Fernando Balaodan and Jeston Balong-angey.  
    The Barangay FOI Kiosk signifies the local government unit is a partner of transparency and accountability.
    Ablan said this year, the awareness campaign on the FOI was intensified through the barangay FOI program with Benguet as pilot area.
    “This year 2021, our office has intensified the awareness campaign on the FOI as the citizens are the primary consumers of information. We are bringing you the FOI as a transparency initiative of the government,” Ablan said.
    President Rodrigo Duterte  signed executive order 2 or the EO on FOI in July 2016 to provide full public disclosure of all government records involving public interest, provided that it shall not put into jeopardy privacy and matters of national security.  With this, the public could access  information from  government.
    As Filipino citizens, we have the constitutional right to ask information from the government, Ablan said as he enjoined the participants from the different sectors and municipalities to be part of the growing community of transparency and accountability seekers.
    Balaodan also presented the salient features of the FOI ordinance of Benguet and encouraged the public to access the FOI  program  for the  information they  need.
    Rafael commended the province of Benguet for being the second province in the country to pass its own FOI ordinance in 2018.
    “In behalf of Secretary Martin Andanar and the PCOO, we commend the provincial government of Benguet for passing provincial ordinance No. 88234 and we encourage the local government units of Benguet to pass their FOI ordinances and register with the e-FOI Portal and partner with us. Having an FOI ordinance translate to a transparent local government which increases a degree of trust to our constituents,” Rafael said.
    Diclas thanked the PCOO for conducting the FOI orientation to Benguet stakeholders. He said  the provincial government is promoting transparency and accountability  by allowing the public to access information  through FOI and through traditional and social media.
    The governor encouraged FOI participants to inform other people in their barangays about the FOI program so more people will access information that they need from the government. -- PIA Cordillera

Read more...

Quo vadis Radio Sagada? General assembly set soon

HAPPY WEEKEND   

Gina Dizon

SAGADA Mountain Province -- Faced with technical, financial, management and red-tagging issues, beleaguered Radio Sagada will conduct its general assembly soon to thresh out matters and plan what to do next.
    Calls for the conduct of general assembly via social media were brought to the attention of the board of trustees (BOT) as continuous airing of music was heard on the airwaves of Radio Sagada’s 104.7 FM for quite some time. 
    BOT chairman Fr Marcs Castaneda said a general assembly shall be conducted in ‘due time when all things will be well and ready.”
    The holding of a general assembly had been discussed by the BOT in their meetings, Castaneda added. 
    The above concern was compounded with the Radio Sagada Community Media Network (RSCMN) popularly called Radio Sagada going off- air  due to technical glitches a week ago. 
    Heavy rains visited Sagada a day before the closing of the radio’s operations.    
    Technical issues bugged Radio Sagada through the years especially during heavy rainy seasons when lightning and thunder with resulting power surges brought havoc to the transmitter and receiver installed at the Smart tower at Mt Ampakaw and the radio going off-air.
    In between on and off air operations, Radio Sagada with its  mission,  “Voice of the community,” had been a venue for  talk shows of all sorts – from current events to news features and analysis  political, economic,  religious, cultural, health  and environmental issues. 
    This in some 20 talk shows heard by listeners since its launching in 2011 with a transmission power of 200 watts and heard as far as Viewpoint Banaue, Conner Apayao, Tabuk Kalinga, Tubo Abra, Sayangan Benguet, and Cervantes Ilocos Sur.
    Among top favorite development programs then were Kalin di Umili, Gag-ay di Umiili, Mountain Province Reports, Police Reports and Talk of the Town by private individual volunteer programmers as noted in a survey on ‘program preferences and perceptions of listeners of 104.7 Radio Sagada” by John Waking in his course Bachelor of Science in Development Communication submitted to Benguet State University in April 2013.   
    Some 20 development programs were then heard when Radio Sagada first appeared on air in 2011.  Program volunteers are private individuals from town and some from government agencies – from the Sagada LGU, Mt Province LGU, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Education (DepED); and the ecumenical churches. 
    After sometime in the previous years, the programs gradually disappeared for one reason or another.
Castaneda said, “We are optimistic to have the regular program with news, with the updates from the different government agencies and they will be anchoring their own, spiritual reflections from pastors and priests, and other volunteers with their particular topic and time.”  
    Management issues bugged the station with charges of illegal dismissal against station manager Mary Carling and the Management Board. Filed before the office of the Department of Labor and Employment –National Labor Relations Commission (DOLE-NLRC) in 2016. The complainant- staff Evelyn Piluden eventually won her case at NLRC who decided in her favor in 2018.
    Radio Sagada was established in 2009 with the partnership of program holder Northern Media Information Network, donors Philippine Misereor Partners Inc (PMPI) and MIVA (Ministerio Internacional Vida Abundante), Isis International-Manila which delivered trainings and Radio Sagada Board of Trustees composed of sectoral representatives.
    The National Council of Churches of the Philippines (NCCP) is one among the members of the Radio Sagada’s BOT being the franchise holder of the frequency that Radio Sagada is currently using.  
    Radyo Sagada is a member of the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), an alliance of more than four thousand community radio stations worldwide.
    With the partnership, Germany –based Miserior supported the operations of the radio station from 2011 till it stopped its financial support in December 2021.
    Through the years of the donor’s support, Radio Sagada employed a station manager, a full time broadcaster and two other volunteers who were paid on part time basis doing broadcast and bookkeeping works. 
    Initial support for the start of operations for a radio station in Sagada was given by  party list Bayan Muna sometime in 2004  the amount of P1 million. A fraction of this was used for trainings and the improvement of a structure as its office where the station is housed now. With the non-use of the remaining P850,000 the LGU eventually returned the unspent funds to the national treasury in 2017 due to some technical issues.   
    Some  finances were sourced from  advertizing fees of some government programs namely Cordillera Highland Agricultural Management  Program (CHARMP) of the Department of Agriculture in their program ‘ school on air’ and the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) in their Cordillera autonomy  information education campaigns.
    Other funds were sourced from politicians who delivered their sorties in previous electoral campaigns in the 2013, 2016 and 2019 national elections. 
    Recently, it was learned that the local government unit of Sagada forwarded to support Radio Sagada with  P200,000 for the radio station’s operations but no actual allotment was yet done in the LGU’s budget.
    Via social media through Sagada Reports Facebook group page, Castaneda said a memorandum of agreement is ‘under study by the BOT of Radio Sagada and the LGU of Sagada.
    In said Facebook group page, Dr Gay Manodon, vice chairperson of NCCP informed  Castaneda that NCCP be given a copy  of the MOA  “if they will be amenable to said MOA”, NCCP being the franchise holder of frequency Radio Sagada is using. 
    Red tagging issues also bug Radio Sagada.
    As informed  by Castaneda among some ‘persons of interest’ and members from the Sagada-based 54rth IB and the Philippine National Police (PNP) , Castaneda said Radio Sagada is one among red-tagged radio stations in the country in a meeting  February this year.
    While this is so, management concerns is one pressing matter that RSCMN faces along with a BOD with a three year term which lapsed this 2021. BOT chairperson Steve Dagacan held the chairmanship for quite some time till Castaneda took over in 2018.
    Station manager for 10 years Mary Carling resigned April this year.
    Radio Sagada as the “Voice of the community” awaits its going on air again.

Read more...

Suspects in Pangasinan journalist’s slay charged

By Eva Visperas

VILLASIS, Pangasinan — Three persons tagged in the killing of journalist Virgilio Maganes in November have been charged with murder.
    There was probable cause to file the charges against Noe Ducay, Romar Bustillos and a John Doe, according to a resolution issued by senior assistant prosecutor Charlotte Duron-Cabida and approved by provincial prosecutor Abraham Ramos II on Feb. 8.
    Cabida’s findings, which were corroborated by investigators and witnesses, showed that Bustillos acted as the “point man” when he sent a text message to Ducay, the alleged gunman, when Maganes was about to enter the compound of his home in Barangay Blas.
    Maganes was shot dead by motorcycle-riding men, one of them believed to be Ducay.
    The victim wrote for local newspaper Northern Watch and was a commentator for dwPR.
    The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said Maganes survived an ambush in November 2016 by playing dead.
    Presidential Communications Operations Office and Presidential Task Force on Media Security co-chairman lauded the PTFoMS staff, National Prosecution Service and local police for the early resolution of the case.
    PTFoMS executive director Joe Sy Egco commended personnel of the Villasis police for their “immediate intervention and continuous investigation” of the incident.

Read more...