MUNTINLUPA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – A Muntinlupa court on Wednesday, February 17, acquitted opposition Senator Leila de Lima in one of her 3 criminal charges.
But the court denied that the dismissed charge was for concubinage. Rather, it is one of 3 charges for conspiracy to commit drug trading.
De Lima had admitted to have had a romantic relationship with her bodyguard/driver Ronnie Dayan, a married man, citing “frailties of a woman.”
Dayan is a co-accused in one of the remaining charges against De Lima.
MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – It took all of five years before the Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), to rule on the protest of former Senator Bongbong Marcos against the election of Leni Robredo as Vice President of the Philippines. The high court all but affirmed Robredo’s election.
But in a separate ruling, the Supremes also ruled that Robredo must abide by the provisions of the Philippine Constitution which states that the Vice President has no real powers or functions except to wait for something to happen to the President. As part of the ruling, the Court issued a cease and desist order to Robredo relating to her VP position. She can no longer issue public statements as VP, or undertake her own public relations projects under the guise of providing service to the Filipino people. The court also ordered the government’s budget office to take back the Office of the Vice President’s approved budget for 2021.
Robredo herself, early on, acknowledged the “no power” provision for the VP under the Philippine Constitution:
MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – They were supposed to provide Filipinos with factual information and serve as a vehicle to calm frayed nerves brought about by the coronavirus pandemic, but the Presidential Press Briefings seem to be adding more stress for many, thanks to Spokesperson Harry Roque.
GMA 7 correspondent Joseph Morong had even advised Roque — on live TV — “to relax” after he and many viewers noticed the Spox to get so easily irritated by reporters’ questions and criticism from President Rodrigo Duterte’s opponents. Roque’s facial expressions — not to mention his snark remarks — when encountering the likes of Rappler’s Pia Ranada are classic.
But it is not just members of the Malacañang Press Corps who suffer from Roque’s ways. A yet-to-be-published survey among hospitals across the country shows that outside of Covid-19, mental and emotional stress is among the top reasons for Emergency Room visits. Patients interviewed indicate a common stressor: listening to Roque’s Presidential Press Briefings. What a departure from the calm demeanor of Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles!
Here is one of Roque’s most talked about come-back to Duterte’s critics to date:
