Manila Standard - 2021 February 17 - Wednesday

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SC junks Marcos poll protest Bongbong says fight not over, to appeal case vs. Robredo’s VP win By Rey E. Requejo, Rio N. Araja, Vito Barcelo, Macon RamosAraneta and Maricel V. Cruz

T

HE Supreme Court, acting as Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), has dismissed the electoral protest of former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. against Vice President Leni Robredo over his election defeat in 2016. In a press briefing, Court spokesman The PET also dismissed the counterBrian Keith Hosaka said the 15 PET protest filed by Robredo against Marcos. members unanimously resolved to disBut Marcos' camp, in an interview on miss the entire electoral protest filed by Teleradyo, said the fight is not yet over, Marcos for lack of merit. as they could still file a motion for recon-

Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

sideration. “Whatever the decision is, we will face it. But it does not mean that we will just bow down to it. We will continue our fight until 2022,” Marcos’s lawyer and spokesman Vic Rodriguez said. Rodriguez earlier said the PET only unanimously voted to dismiss their second cause of action, which was the manual recount and judicial revision. “However, as to the issue on how to proceed with our third cause of action which is the annulment of votes in Mindanao, the tribunal has yet to decide on the matter,” Rodriguez said. Next page

Vice President Leni Robredo

Rody mulls MGCQ for whole PH after NEDA pushes reopening By Vito Barcelo, Willie Casas, and Macon Ramos-Araneta PRESIDENT Duterte is studying a proposal to place the entire country under VOL. XXXV • NO. 07 • 2 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2021 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

COVID-19 PH AT A GLANCE

(AS OF 4 PM FEB. 16)

552,246 TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES

1,391 28,926 NEW

11,524

ACTIVE

7

DEATHS

NEW

511,796

45

RECOVERIES

NEW

Gov’t assures no disruptions in vax purchase, distribution By Vito Barcelo and Willie Casas THE government is fully prepared for an orderly coronavirus vaccination and to ensure that there won’t be any “monkey wrench” to disrupt the program in the country, President Rodrigo Duterte has said. The President made this commitment during his meeting with top government officials about the procurement and distribution of coronavirus vaccines in Davao City Monday night.

The Chief executive also expressed his desire to certify as urgent the passage of bills creating an indemnification agreement and advance market commitment to speed up coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine negotiations and deliveries. During the meeting, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said the country was finalizing the preparations for the massive vaccination program, noting that stakeholders were just awaiting the signing of an indemnification clause as well as advance market commitment. Next page

P500m fund for jab indemnity set By Vito Barcelo, Rio N. Araja, Willie Casas and Macon Ramos-Araneta THE government wants a P500 million fund for indemnification of Filipinos who may suffer from severe side effects of COVID-19 vaccines, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez said Tuesday.

Galvez, who handles the vaccine procurement for the government, urged lawmakers to include in the proposed Bayanihan 3 law a provision awarding damages to citizens who may suffer from vaccine injuries. “The recommendation of the Department of Finance is P500 million Next page

overwhelmed by the outpouring of bipartisan support from his colleagues in the A TOTAL 224 lawmakers have supported House for his bill, otherwise known as Speaker Lord Allan Velasco's proposed the Bayanihan 3. “I want to thank my colleagues for risP420-billion stimulus package to help the ing above party-lines and for always economy recover from COVID-19. Next page This developed as Velasco said he was

By Maricel V. Cruz

By Rey E. Requejo and Vito Barcelo

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SCRAMBLE TO SAFETY. Members of the Philippine Coast Guard and local disaster management teams in Talisay, Batangas help 200 Taal Island residents -- including an elderly woman who points to her shack near the shore (inset) -- evacuate from the volcano island as a precaution against the possible eruption of the volcano, after Phivolcs recorded an increase in its activity in the past 24 hours (See story on A2). PCG photo

224 solons back P420b stimulus bill

DFA chief raises ‘lethal parity’ for PH in US treaty FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Tuesday said the Philippines has the right to expect some “lethal parity” measure in its mutual defense agreement with the United States. Locsin said when the Philippines entered into the Mutual Defense Treaty with the US in 1951, it was expected that Manila “could hold up its end of the bargain of mutual defense.” However, Locsin noted that the US came out of World War II it was the best armed country in the world, while the Philippines was left in ruins worse than Warsaw in Poland. “So we had and have a right to expect some measure of lethal parity in the mutual defense treaty,” the country’s top diplomat said, in a Twitter post.

the least restrictive quarantine level by March to further reopen the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Palace said Tuesday. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the President would take up the suggestion with his Cabinet on Feb. 22. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua has earlier asked the President to consider and approve the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) recommendation to place the entire country under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) starting March 1, to balance the opening of the economy and the control of the coronavirus. “This is only a recommendation. The President is carefully studying this recommendation,” Roque said. He said localized lockdowns could instead be implemented at the village or municipal level to curb any spread of the Next page illness.

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RUNWAY FIXED. Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, and NAIA General Manager Eddie Monreal grace the inauguration of the newly repaired runway 13/31 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Tuesday. Avito C. Dalan

Chicken supply to last until yearend Secretary William Dar said “the supply of chicken will last until the end of 2021,” THERE will be enough supply of chick- adding “As far as the vegetables are conen in the market, according to the Depart- cerned, we have plenty of them. Next page ment of Agriculture.

By Rio N. Araja

ANTI-POLIO JAB. A nurse of the Philippine Red Cross prepares to administer polio and measles vaccinations to children at the mobile clinic in R10, Barangay NorthBay Boulevard, Navotas City on Tuesday. Norman Cruz


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