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Pentagon releases secret files on UFO sightings
ASEAN renews push for South China Sea COC
WORLD / A4
NEWS / A3
VOL. XL • NO. 85 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES MAY 10, 2026
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House leader says no doubt VP Sara will be impeached By Maricel V. Cruz and Joel E. Zurbano A HOUSE leader yesterday expressed confidence that Vice President Sara Duterte will be impeached on Monday both on the basis of strong evidence or on what the people want. “I have no doubt that she will be impeached. The evidence is overwhelming. Public opinion is not in her favor. So, no matter where you base your vote, VP Sara will still be impeached,” said Rep. Joel Chua, chairman of the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability. “Aside from the preponderance of strong grounds to impeach VP Duterte, what makes the Vice President’s situation worse is her and her lawyers’ efforts to belittle and even ridicule the solid evidence against her,” added Chua, who is also a member of the House Committee on Justice. A recent OCTA Research survey showed 69 percent of Filipinos agree with an impeachment trial for the Vice President. Turn to A4
Mabanta, 4 others post bail in alleged extortion try case
SWEET LOVE.
A mother and her child spend quality time playing around Quezon Memorial Circle on Saturday morning, a day before the celebration of Mother’s Day. Edd Castro
ICC clarifies: No new arrest warrants issued in PH
By Rolando Ng III THE Pasig City Regional Trial Court has issued a release order on Saturday online media network personality Franco Mabanta and four others after they posted bail over their alleged extortion try on former Speaker Martin Romualdez. Judge Annielyn Medes-Cabelis signed the order after Peanut Gallery Media Network founder Mabanta and four others posted bail worth P120,000 each. The five were ordered released from the National Bureau of Investigation Detention Facility in Muntinlupa City, where they have been detained since Thursday. Mabanta and four others were arrested on Tuesday after they allegedly attempted to extort P350 million from Romualdez in exchange for not publishing a supposedly damaging video. Earlier, the lawyer of Romualdez, Elaine Atienza, rejected claims that the arrest of PGMN founder Mabanta was an attack on press freedom, insisting that the case centers on alleged extortion and not journalism.
But DILG says preparing 10,000-strong task force if warrant out vs. Sen. Bato
Senator Bato dela Rosa
“No public arrest warrants have been issued in relation to the situation in the Philippines,” ICC spokesperson Oriane Maillet said in a text message to reporters. “We cannot speculate on these matters or on any confidential information,” she said. Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, for his part, said he considered reports on the arrest warrant against Dela Rosa a “hearsay,” but said he will form a 10,000-strong task force for possible dragnet operations. “We are forming it (task force). The unverified info just arrived this morning. It takes time to mobilize,” Remulla said, Remulla said Dela Rosa’s last
By Pot Chavez, Rolando Ng III, Rex Espiritu
T
he International Criminal Court clarified it has not yet issued any new public arrest warrants in the Philippines amid reports that an order has been released to nab Senator Bato dela Rosa in connection with the crimes against humanity case against former President Rodrigo Duterte.
known location was in the Davao region. Dela Rosa has not attended Senate sessions since November 2025 after reports surfaced that the ICC issued an arrest warrant against him as a co-conspirator of Duterte. Also named co-perpetrators in a 50-page public redacted version of an ICC document were Senator Christopher “Bong” Go and former police officials such as Vicente Danao, Camilo Cascolan, Oscar Albayalde, and Isidro Lapeña. Former National Bureau of Investigation director Dante Gierran and former justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre were also named in the document. Turn to A4
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Duterte replaces Kaufman ahead of ICC trial By Pot Chavez and Maricel Cruz
BILATERAL MEETING. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. meets with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul in Cebu on Saturday to discuss a broad range of issues aimed at further strengthening the longstanding partnership between Manila and Bangkok. PCO
FORMER president Rodrigo Duterte has decided to replace his lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman ahead of his trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC), the latter confirmed Friday night. In a court document dated May 8, Kaufman formally notified the ICC Trial Chamber III that he would withdraw as Duterte’s counsel. He was originally tapped to represent the former chief executive for one year, which was terminated on March 31, 2026. Kaufman said the defense team
Nicholas Kaufman, chief legal counsel of former President Rodrigo Duterte
visited Duterte on May 7 and the former chief executive has conveyed his decision to hire another lead counsel, the name of whom was redacted in the court document. Kaufman said he has spoken to the lawyer “who has indeed confirmed that he is ready, willing, and able to assume immediate representation and that his terms of engagement have been agreed.” In a separate court document, the ICC Trial Chamber III also granted Dov Jacobs’ request to withdraw as Duterte’s associate counsel. Kaufman described Duterte’s incoming counsel as highly experienced in ICC litigation. Turn to A4
Mayon ash deposit extent for crops about the size of Mandaluyong By Rex Espiritu THE wide swath of agricultural crop lands potentially affected by volcanic ash from the restive Mayon Volcano in Albay is about the size of Mandaluyong City, the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) said Saturday. PhilSA said the estimated ash deposit extent from Mayon following its pyroclastic density
current on May 2 covered at least 1,039 hectares of rice areas and 191 hectares of other crops. The combined crop area was described as “roughly the size of Mandaluyong City.” The damage and losses to agriculture in the Bicol Region due to Mayon Volcano’s unrest have reached about P13.02 million, according to the Department of Agriculture.
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To visually illustrate the extent of ashfall crop exposure, the PhilSA created a map showing ash-affected Physical Rice Areas (orange) and other crop areas (yellow). The large area bordered by orange lines shows the estimated ash deposit extent. The star, meanwhile, marks Mayon Volcano. “PhilSA analyzes satellite
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data to provide wide-area coverage that assists NDRRMC (National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council) in monitoring the situation and prioritizing areas for response,” PhilSA said. The agency advised the public to follow local and national agencies for advisories on Mayon’s activity.
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