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FEBRUARY 7-13, 2019
T H E F I L I P I N O –A M E R I C A N C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R
Volume 30 - No. 6 • 2 Sections – 16 Pages
2770 S. Maryland Pkwy., Suite 200 Las Vegas, NV 89109 Tel: (702) 792-6678 • Fax: (702) 792-6879
Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY
US report cites AFP’s ‘limited ability’ to track terrorists by FRANCES
MANGOSING Inquirer.net
A soldier views the site inside a Roman Catholic cathedral in Jolo, the capital of Sulu province in the southern Philippines after two bombs exploded last January 27. Photo courtesy of Armed Forces of the Philippines
DATELINE USA
THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has “limited ability” to gather and process intelligence information on its own to effectively fight terrorism, a recently released 2018 assessment report of the United States said. According to the 5th Lead Inspector General quarterly report on Operation Pacific Eagle-Philippines (OPE-P), “the AFP had limited ability to collect information on a target and provide that intelligence to a unit on the ground to act on it.”
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Jolo cathedral bombing suspects charged before court by KRISTINE JOY AND
FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA
Filipina doctor named chief of staff at Glendale hospital A FILIPINA doctor has been named the chief of staff at Dignity Health-Glendale Memorial Hospital in Glendale, California, becoming the first person of Filipino descent to hold that position and the fourth female in the hospital’s history. Brigeli Westerband, an emergency Dr. Brigeli room physician, was named chief of Westerband, staff at Glendale Memorial Hospital who has been an this past January. AJPress photo by Noel Ty emergency room physician at the hospital for the past 20 years, was elected to a two-year term at the beginning of January. She succeeds previous chief of staff, Dr. Randall Roberts.
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Study: Filipinos spend 10 hours a day online, the most in the world Philippines also tops most time spent on social media
A NEW report revealed that people in the Philippines spent more time on the internet than any other country in the world in 2018. The annual Digital 2019 report, created by social media platforms and agencies, We Are Social and Hootsuite, found that those in the Philippines spent an average of 10 hours and two minutes online, an increase from the nine hours and 29 minutes spent per day in the year prior. The average amount of time spent worldwide clocked in at six hours and 42 minutes per day, with Japan spending the least amount of time online with just three hours and 45 minutes spent per day. Taking a closer look at usage, the Philippines topped other countries when it came to time spent using the internet in front of a desktop or laptop computer. Compared to
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FEMALE MAJORITY. Thirty-two female members of the Nevada Legislature pose for photos before the start of the 80th Legislative Session, in Carson City, Nevada on Monday, February 4 . Nevada becomes the first state in the U.S. with a female majority Legislature. Women now make up 51 percent of Nevada state legislature. Photo by Cathleen Allison/Nevada Momentum
PATAG EMMANUEL TUPAS Philstar.com
MANILA — The Department of Justice on Wednesday, February 6, charged the principal suspect Mukammar Pae alias “Kammah” and four others who were tagged in the Jolo cathedral bombing that killed at least 23 people and injured several civilians and authorities. Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete said that Officer-in-Charge, Provincial Prosecutor Rommel Cancio filed charges of complex crime of multiple murder with PNP Director General Oscar Albayalde says the five bomb suspects surrendered because they multiple frustrated murder against “Kamdidn’t want to die in the ongoing military offensive in Sulu. mah” and the following: Mukammar Pay alias Inquirer.net photo by Niño Jesus Orbeta
Kammah, Alnaji Gadjali alias Apah, Radjan Gadjaliw, Kaiser Gadjalli and Said Alih. The Star reported that the charges include 23 counts of murder and 95 counts of frustrated murder before a trial court in Jolo. Also named in the charge sheet are several identified and unidentified accused who remain at large. Trial in Jolo for now Perete said that Department of Justice has yet to ask to transfer the trial in a Manila court from Jolo. “The evidence and witnesses necessary to prosecute the case are in Jolo,” the DOJ spokesperson said. Perete said that it would be “more effi-
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‘PH closer to winning fight vs sexual harassment’ THE country is a step closer to winning the fight against sexual harassment after the Senate ratified the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed Safe Spaces Act, according to Senator Risa Hontiveros. Hontiveros, who authored and sponsored the Senate version of the bill, said in a statement on Wednesday that the measure will impose stiffer penalties on people doing “unwanted sexual actions.” “We are one step closer to enacting a long-sought and long-overdue law that will better protect Filipinos – especially women and LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) persons – from bigotry and hatred we see rampant in our streets, schools and
even workplaces today,” she said. If enacted, the proposal will penalize acts such as “catcalling, wolf-whistling, unwanted invitations, misogynistic, transphobic, homophobic and sexist slurs, sexual comments and suggestions, public masturbation or flashing of private parts, groping, or any advances, whether verbal or physical, that are unwanted and threaten one’s sense of personal space and physical safety”. It will also amend R.A. 7877 or the AntiSexual Harassment Act of 1995, as sexual harassment “between peers and those committed to a superior officer by a subordinate, or to a teacher by a student, or to a trainer by a trainee” will also be penalized. The House of Representatives Committee on Health has recommended filing graft and technical
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malversation charges against former President Benigno Aquino III and former Health Secretary Janette Garin over the Dengvaxia vaccine debacle. Philstar.com photo by Edd Gumban
Duterte impersonator turns House panel wants charges vs heads at Hong Kong church Aquino, Abad, Garin over Dengvaxia by
RAE ANN VARONA AJPress
HEADS were turned on Sunday, February 2 when a Rodrigo Duterte impersonator walked into a Hong Kong church frequented by many of the city’s Filipino community members during a mass service. By his side was an uncanny doppelganger of North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un. Impersonating Duterte was 57year-old Filipino Cresencio Estremos Jr., who also goes by his impersonator name of Cresencio Extreme. Taking on the look of A Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte impersonator sparked frenzy and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un confusion during a mass in a Hong Kong church. He was accompanied by Howard was Hong Kong-based imperson- X, the Hong Kong-based impersonator of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
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Photo screengrabbed from Youtube/Inquirer.net
MANILA — The House of Representatives Committee on Health has recommended filing charges of graft, technical malversation and grave misconduct against former President Benigno Aquino III, former Budget Secretary Florencio Abad and former Health Secretary Janette Garin in connection to the Dengvaxia mess. In its report, the House committee pointed out that there was an apparent collusion among public officials to ensure that the government would purchase a large quantity of Dengvaxia vaccine. “These officials provided shortcuts in the process to favor Sanofi Pasteur, the manufacturer of a
commercially available dengue vaccine,” the report read. The report noted that several public officials may be held liable for “conspiring and confederating with one another,” violating Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. The House panel said Aquino should be held liable for approving the P3.5-billion budget for the purchase of dengue vaccines in 2015 while Abad should be charged for requesting the release of these funds. Garin, on the other hand, should be held liable for proposing the procurement of Dengvaxia despite
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