Peso tumbles vs dollar BUSINESS B1
P53.23 : $1 VOL. XXXII • NO. 119 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 2018 • www.manilastandard.net • editorial@manilastandard.net
‘Arm the barangay chiefs’
Duterte toying with idea amid rash of killings; 3 solons wary By Vito Barcelo and Maricel V. Cruz
P
RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said he might arm barangay officials following the spate of killings of community leaders and warned of a “radical change” to ensure law and order in the Philippines, but lawmakers from both sides of the political fence opposed the idea. “I might consider arming you. If I think in my assessment and evaluation, if you are really into it, I will support you. And I may grant you possession and to carry your firearms,” the President said during the oathtaking of newly elected barangay officials in Clark, Pampanga, Tuesday night. He said the rules governing the use of firearms for ordinary civilians will also apply to barangay captains, and this would include having the firearms licensed and securing a permit to carry it outside of their residence. At least 20 barangay captains and kagawads were killed from January to May this year.
THE state-owned People’s Television Network will soon air Chinese TV series, documentaries, cartoons, and movies translated into Filipino, naming the project as “DreamWorks made in China.” Next page
SARA DUTERTE
5 suspects in priest’s murder hunted down By Vito Barcelo and Macon Ramos-Araneta
Sara Duterte locks horns with senator over 2022 run By Macon Ramos-Araneta IF DAVAO City Mayor Sara Duterte runs for President in 2022, this would be to keep her father, President Rodrigo Duterte out of jail, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said Wednesday. His statement drew an immediate reaction from the mayor, who told Trillanes not to think of her, speak her Next page
SENATOR ANTONIO TRILLIANES
Boracay natives may regain lands By Vito Barcelo THE original inhabitants of Boracay Island may soon get back their lands under the agrarian land reform program and then sell it to businessmen for a profit, President Rodrigo Duterte said late Tuesday. Speaking in Pampanga during the oath-
TO ARM OR NOT TO ARM.
President Rodrigo Duterte floats the idea Tuesday night of arming barangay officials following killings of community leaders—in the same week police are hunting down five suspects in the murder of a Catholic priest in Nueva Ecija, with Duterte denying accusations he is persecuting priests, and Acting Supreme Court Chief Justice Antonio Carpio condemining the killing of a judge in Camarines Sur.
THE majority of Filipino Internet users believe “fake news” or false information on the Internet has become a serious problem, a Social Weather Stations survey revealed Wednesday. Next page
By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan
Next page
The latest killing was on May 14 identified as Leonilo Arbonido, barangay captain of Julugan VI in Tanza, Cavite, who was shot dead by unidentified armed
Fake news poses problem—SWS
Govt’s PTV to air Chinese TV series
men onboard a motorcyle. The President also assured his full support to barangay officials who might face lawsuits while performing their duty, saying he was ready to intervene and support their cause. However, Duterte warned the barangay officials that if they cannot govern their
taking of newly elected barangay captains, the President said he would only want Boracay’s beach front to be used for commercial purposes, while the rest of the island would be subject to land reform. The chief executive said the resort island can only take so much because it’s just a small strip of land. Next page
POLICE said Wednesday they are hunting five suspects in the murder of Fr. Richmond Nilo in Nueva Ecija over the weekend as the Palace condemned the killing of priests. President Rodrigo Duterte, however, denied accusations that he is persecuting priests despite the spate of killings of clergymen. “I read in some media reports that some were asking me to stop persecuting priests. But I did not say anything,” Duterte said. “You know, a priest is no better than me. Some priests even have two wives,” he said.
BLAME THE RAINS.
The heavy dowpour in the aftermath of severe Tropical Storm ‘Domeng,’ which lashed much of northern Philippines, particularly Cagayan Valley, has forced residents of the often flooded Malabon City in Metro Manila, as these ones at the Artex Compound, to take a boat Wednesday for their transport needs. Andrew Rabulan
Chief Supt. Amado Corpus said CCTV footage showed two motorcycle riders on a road near the chapel just before Nilo was gunned down before he was able to say Mass. A third suspect on a motorcycle was seen serving as a lookout, while two others were inside a getaway vehicle, Corpuz said. Nilo was the third Catholic priest shot dead by unknown gunmen in the last six months, sparking impassioned calls for justice from officers of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. Unidentified gunmen killed Fr. Marcelito Paez, 72, in Nueva Ecija in December 2017, and Fr. Mark Anthony Ventura in Cagayan province in April. Next page
CamSur judge shot dead over land row---PNP ACTING Chief Justice Antonio Carpio condemned the killing of San Jose-Lagonoy Camarines Sur Metropolitan Circuit Trial Court Judge Ricky Begino Tuesday. In a statement Wednesday, Carpio asked the authorities to expedite the investigation and arrest of those responsible for the killing and bring justice to Begino. Authorities have reportedly arrested a suspect in the killing, 72-year-old Wilfredo Armea, of Presentacion town, Camarines Sur. Investigators said a land dispute was the possible motive for the killing. Police said the judge was shot once and was hit in the neck Tuesday afternoon. He was taken to the hospital but died Tuesday evening. Last year, two judges were killed—retired Surigao City regional trial court judge Victor Canoy and Butuan City RTC Judge Godofredo Abul Jr. Ousted chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno also expressed her sadness at the murder of another judge and her friend. Rey E. Requejo
Donald accepts Kim’s bonding trip to N. Korea
SEOUL—Donald Trump accepted an invitation from Kim Jong-un to visit North Korea during their historic summit, Pyongyang state media reported Wednesday, as the US president said the world had jumped back from the brink of “nuclear catastrophe.” Critics have said the unprecedented encounter in Singapore was more style than substance, producing a document that was short on details about the key issue of Pyongyang’s atomic weapons. But in a characteristically bullish tweet, Trump said the first-ever meeting between sitting leaders of the two Cold War foes meant “the World has taken a big step back from potential Nuclear catastrophe!” “No more rocket launches, nuclear testing or research! The hostages Next page