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ICC reopens drug war probe
DOJ chief slams move as 'not welcome, irritant'; gov't plans to appeal By Rey E. Requejo, Macon Ramos-Araneta, and Maricel V. Cruz HE International Criminal Court (ICC) has authorized the resumption of its investigation into the bloody antidrug war and the alleged “Davao Death Squad” killings under the Duterte administration in the Philippines.
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In a statement dated Jan. 26, the into "the situation of the Republic of ICC Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) said it the Philippines." has approved ICC Prosecutor Karim According to the ICC, Manila's Next page Khan's request to continue its probe
VOL. XXXVI • NO. 346• 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 SATURDAY, SATURDAY JANUARY 28, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
COAST GUARDIANS. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. underscored the vital role of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in maintaining the safety and security of the Philippines during an oath-taking ceremony for 15 PCG officers in Malacañang on Thursday night. Mr. Marcos also reaffirmed his commitment to the PCG's mission and urged the officers to remain vigilant and dedicated to their service to the Filipino people. PCO photo
High Tribunal upholds TRAIN law, affirms its constitutionality By Rey E. Requejo and Maricel V. Cruz THE Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutionality of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act of 2017, which amended the 1997 National Internal Revenue Code. In an en banc decision adopted Jan.
24, the Court through Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao resolved to dismiss the two petitions questioning the law’s constitutionality. In their petitions, ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio and Laban Konsyumer argued that the TRAIN Act was unconstitutional because it was passed by the House of Representatives despite an alleged lack of quorum, and that its
provisions which imposed excise taxes on diesel, coal, liquefied petroleum gas, and kerosene, were prohibited regressive taxes. The petitioners in the two cases also alleged that the excise taxes were confiscatory and discriminatory against the poor and violated the Filipino people’s right to due process and equal protection of laws. Next page
SC rules as illegal banning losing bets PBBM meets in previous poll as party-list nominees Senate, House heads to push legislative plan
PROHIBITING candidates who lost any electoral position to run as partylist nominees in the succeeding polls is unconstitutional, the Supreme Court has declared, as it struck down provisions in both the Party-List System Act and the Rules and Regulations of the Commission on Elections (Comelec). In an en banc decision penned by Associate Justice Jhosep Lopez, the SC resolved as unconstitutional the pertinent phrase “a person who has lost his bid
for elective office in the immediately preceding election” under Section 8 of Republic Act No. 7941, the Party-List System Act. It also struck down the phrases “have lost in their bid for an elective office in the May 13, 2019 National and Local Elections” and “or a person who has lost his bid for an elective office in the May 13, 2019 National and Local Elections,” under Sections 5(d) and 10, respectively, of Comelec Resolution No. 10717. Next page
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with the leaders of both houses of Congress on Friday to discuss the administration’s legislative agenda for this year. The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) posted a photo of Mr. Marcos' meeting with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and Speaker Martin Next page
3rd straight week of fuel price hike up
JOB HUNTING. Job seekers both young and old troop to Arroceros Forest Park in Manila as the City Government of Manila hosted a Mega Job Fair on Friday. Norman Cruz
No free bus rides after all, only discount
By Alena Mae S. Flores
SHIP IN DISTRESS. Crewmen of the Philippine Coast Guard ship BRP Cabra get ready to rescue seven Chinese crew members of a fishing vessel in the waters off Suluan Island, Guiuan, Eastern Samar on Friday after it sent an SOS following a damaged hull. PCG Photo
DEPED TAPS PNP FOR SECURITY AT SCHOOLS NEWS / A2
COMELEC JUNKS PIMENTEL PLEA ON PDP-LABAN NEWS / A2
THE Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) can only DOMESTIC fuel pump prices are likely offer discounts —no more free rides—for to go up by around P1.50 to P1.60 per liter commuters using the EDSA Bus Carousel for gasoline and kerosene and P0.90 to line owing to a limited budget this year, P1 per liter of diesel next week, reflecting its chief said on Friday. LTFRB head Assistant Secretary Teothe movement of prices in the world oil filo Guadiz III said offering discounts to market, an industry source said Friday. The source said the indicative the riding public would let the agency Next page “stretch” the P1.2-billion budget given
for the program. “Probably what we will do here is we will just be giving discount,” he said in a press briefing, when asked if the Libreng Sakay Program from the EDSA Bus Carousel will resume. Other modes of transportation such as jeepneys, and not just the current buses using the carousel, will be covered by the planned discounts, Guadiz said. Next page
Marcos accepts Macron invite for state visit to France counterpart, President Emmanuel Macron, for a state visit to Paris, according to PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ac- the French Ambassador to the Philippines. Ambassador Michèle Boccoz said cepted Friday the invitation of his French
By Vince Lopez
in a message President Marcos has accepted the invitation and would mark the first such visit by a Filipino president since 1989. Next page