Law enforcers deployed near the known family compound of Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. in Bacoor, Cavite attempted to conduct a search the premises of firearms at least three times but failed to secure a warrant from the court.

“According to our information, the police who surrounded our home applied to at least three judges for search warrants to search our home, but all of them denied the application,” Revilla revealed.
“Does the good (Interior) Secretary (Manuel ‘Mar’ Roxas II), who is not even a lawyer, mean to say that all judges were wrong and that only he and his police are right?” Revilla added as he chided the Cabinet official.
Roxas reportedly is tossing the blame on the Cavite judge for failing to issue immediately a search warrant in the Revilla family compound as this led to the escape, supposedly, of the armed men with high-powered automatic firearms.
Six men who identified themselves as agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) were arrested last week near the Revilla residence for illegal possession of firearms but the others purported to be also carrying high-powered firearms, managed to escape before police could file charges of violation of gun ban and usurpation of authority against them.
The 32 policemen deployed in the area were pulled out only last Friday after the Cavite police provincial office (PPO) received a copy of the resolution from the court denying the motion for reconsideration for a warrant to search the Revilla compound.
“Is this MARtial law? Panahon na ba ng Mar Roxas Law (Is it time of Mar Roxas Law now)? I cannot understand Secretary Roxas’ obsession with me and my family. He claims not to take things personally, but his actions show otherwise,” Revilla lamented.
“Lahat mali, siya lang ang tama (We’re all wrong, he’s only right)? I don’t think so. If the PNP (Philippine National Police) and the DILG (Department of the Interior and Local Government) have questions about the legitimacy of the NBI operations and operatives, they should settle their qualms with the NBI, not with me. I have nothing to do with the composition of the NBI Team that was dispatched to our aid after being continuously harassed by the PNP. All I know is that we sought the official assistance of the NBI, and the NBI responded to our request,” he said.
The senator, who is out to call for an investigation in the Senate on the incident, gave broad hints in taking retaliatory moves and in all likelihood, based on his own statements, be targeting Roxas.
Revilla further insinuated having in his possession some supposed evidence to back up his charges of supposed harassment committed by the law enforcers in trying to search their home of loose firearms.
“The good secretary also said he was on top of the situation and that the PNP operations against our family were legitimate and sanctioned by him. Mabuti at sinabi niya iyon para malinaw kung sino ang magiging accountable sa mga abuso ng PNP sa Cavite (It is good he said that, now it’s clear who would be held accountable on PNP abuses in Cavite),” the Cavite solon said.
“Remember, the PNP operations carried out by the same police unit, which resulted to the Atimonan massacre early this year, was also claimed by authorities to be ‘legitimate.’ Only when strong and stark evidence showing otherwise came out, that authorities made a turnaround. Sa dami ng ebidensiya na ilalabas namin sa tamang panahon, sigurado akong may kakain ng salita (With a lot of evidence we will present in a right time, I’m sure somebody will eat his words),” he said.

Believing in false hopes, ZTE-NBN whistle-blower Rodolfo Noel “Jun” Lozada Jr. has to remain an accused to face a legal battle against the top officials of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, after President Aquino has declared totally his “hands-off” position on the dire situation.
Aquino denied the allegations of Lozada that a form harassment by the President’s men was inflicted to him because he rejected an offer of the President while still a senator to fetch him in Hong Kong during the height of Senate inquiry into the controversial ZTE-NBN deal of the past administration.
Aquino explained for Lozada to understand that his case had originated in the past administration which Aquino had nothing to do with.
“Now harassment. On the charges he is now facing were filed before we assumed office. That is on record. Please check. If for him not to be harassed is to exonerate from the case, that is not in my mandate,” Aquino said.
The President added, “if we interfere with the Ombudsman, then we may be charged in turn, in which he should understand. The last time we talked, he said he had no problem defending his case against these accusations, and he asked from us the documents which would prove his innocence because he could not get them.”
“I told him why don’t you give to us the list of the documents you needed from the office you formerly handled, the PhilForest, to give them to you immediately,” Aquino said.
Aquino added that he even advised Lozada that his lawyer could asked to have the needed documents subpoenaed by the court.
“I asked Executive Secretary (Paquito) Ochoa to act on it. But ES Ochoa told me he has not received the list of the documents up to now,” Aquino said.
He added that he also reminded Interior Secretary Mar Roxas to provide assistance for Lozada if he would need any documents to prove his innocence on the accusations, so that they could at least help him.
Aquino said that he also have party mates who are charged of similar cases of graft before the Office of the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan.
“May I remind him also, I have my party mates, Neric Acosta, who is also facing litigation, along with my other party mate Grace Padaca. On that case of my two party mates, I am prohibited to interfere. That is clear in the Constitution,” Aquino said.
Earlier, Presidential deputy spokesman Abigail Valte had said the Aquino administration may provide for security personnel to Lozada for his safety but could not made him exempt to face his charges before the anti-graft court.
Lozada is accused by the Ombudsman of anomalies in the grant of leasehold rights by Philippine Forest Corp. to his own brother Jose Orlando Lozada when he was president and CEO.
Lozada was expecting he would be exonerated at the Office of Ombudsman under Conchita Carpio-Morales, an appointee of Aquino, but disillusioned when realized he has been dropped by the Aquino administration.
Lozada had the nuns as shield from an arrest issued by the anti-graft court.

Clad in police camouflage and armed with high-powered firearms, more than a dozen New People’s Army (NPA) rebels on Monday night raided a security agency in Tagum City, Davao del Norte, carting away several guns and took a number of people as hostages.

Lt. Col. Lyndon Paniza, spokesman of the Army’s 10 Infantry Division (ID), said that more or less 15 heavily-armed NPA rebels swooped down at the office of DASIA Security Agency in Orange Valley Subdivision, Barangay South at around 8 p.m.
Paniza, quoting reports from the field, said that the communist rebels arrived at the scene aboard two vans, a pickup truck and a black Toyota Fortuner, and passed themselves up as policemen and members of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
“(They) rushed inside the agency office, posed and identified themselves as PNP and PDEA personnel to allegedly conduct inspection,” said Paniza.
“The bandits fled, making off with the manager of the agency and family to include a female minor, the mechanic and two security guards as their hostages,” added Paniza.
Carted away from the security agency were seven high-powered firearms. They also commandeered three armored vehicles owned by the security agency.
Paniza said that the NPA rebels attempted to force open the vault of the agency but failed.
“These criminal NPAs have lost their ideology and now converted into full-pledged criminals engaging into kidnapping, hijacking, arson and other economic sabotage,” said Paniza.
Combined police and military forces, conducting pursuit operations managed to recovered the three armored vehicles commandeered by the rebels at around 11:30 a.m. yesterday during an operation in Sitio Danao, Barangay Lapulapu in Maco, Compostela Valley.
Other vehicles recovered were a red Montero with license plates LGZ-129 and a black Starex (KCP-166).
“Those abducted civilians, especially the female minor should have been spared from their criminal acts. Clearly they don’t respect the individual’s right and will continue to sabotage the development and stability of progressing communities,” Paniza said.

A billionaire once again, is the status of the “richest man” among the 23 current senators, Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr., while the “poorest” happens to be worth a mere fraction of his total net worth.
Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero, with “zero” liabilities, has declared in his 2012 filed statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALn) a P4 million net worth, while that of Villar is P1.4 billion.
Villar regained his over a billion-peso net worth last year, the last time was five years ago, in 2008 when his net worth stood at P1.046 billion. This dropped to P947 million the following year and reduced further to P725 million on the year he took a bid at the presidency in 2010.
He managed to recover his wealth with over P150 million in just a matter of one year as he posted a total net worth of P854 million in 2011. About P1 billion-worth of his investments are currently in the form of shares of stocks, Villar’s 2012 filed SALn said.
No one seems to be even near Villar’s “title” which he has held for the longest time, even while he was still in the House of Representatives, insofar as his colleagues in the upper chamber are concerned as the person who landed second “richest” could only claim less than half of what his current wealth.
Sen. Ralph Recto declared a total net worth of P468.4 million while the third in the “multi-millionaires’ circle” in the upper chamber, Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. net worth is at P437.2 million.
Although Marcos’ total assets reached P471.3 million, his liabilities remained at P34 million.
Fourth is Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada with a net worth of P193.5 million, with his total assets at P215.2 million and liabilities at P21.6 million.
Ranked fifth is Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. with total net worth of P169.1 million which is just P10 million higher compared to Sen. Edgardo Angara whose total net worth is at P159 million.
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, one of the five members with “zero” liabilities, is seventh highest with net worth of P118.6 million and eighth is Sen. Sergio Osmeña III with P111.7 million net worth.
Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago’s net worth is at P77.6 million, giving her the rank of being 9th while Sen. Pia Cayetano is at P72.9 million.
At the 10th place is Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III with P62.2 million; Sen. Franklin Drilon with P51.7 million; Sen. Loren Legarda with P45.9 million and P43.4 million for Sen. Teofisto “TG” Guingona III.
Legarda declared in her filed 2012 SALn a residential apartment in the United States worth P28.7 million.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s total net worth is at P28.8 million followed by Sen. Manuel “Lito” Lapid with P26 million while Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano’s net worth is at P23 million.
Sen. Gregorio Honasan who is ranked 18th has a total net worth of P21 million while Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III is at P16.9 million.
At 20th place is Sen. Francis Pangilinan with net worth of P14.3 million while Sen. Joker Arroyo has P11 million.
Escudero “ousted” Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV from being the “poorest” in 2011 as the latter’s net worth is at P4.4 million although he has a declared assets at P11 million and liabilities amounting to P6.5 million. Angie M. Rosales

Losing Team PNoy senatorial candidates Ramon Magsaysay Jr. yesterday dared the 12 winning senatorial candidates to serve the country and the people well even as he congratulated them for winning the trust and confidence of the electorate. 

“I congratulate the 12 men and women in whom our countrymen have placed their trust as senators of the Republic. I wish them well as they take on their role as servant-leaders. I have high hopes that each of them will adhere to the highest standards of integrity, accountability and public service, which their critical office demands and the Filipino people deserve,” Magsaysay said a day after Team PNoy celebrated their victory with a party at its Polaris headquarters in Makati City last Monday. It was attended by Sen. Franklin Drilon, Team PNoy campaign manager; Senators-elect Koko Pimentel, Cynthia Villar, Sonny Angara, Bam Aquino. Former Sen. Jamby Madrigal, who, like Magsaysay, lost the race attended the victory party.
Magsaysay thanked those who supported his senatorial bid.
“I sincerely thank everyone who helped in my campaign, whose faith, dynamism and generosity have sustained me every step of the way. I also thank the countless others who expressed support and confidence in me personally, through mail and even electronically. Every smile, handshake and encouraging word is truly appreciated,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Magsaysay was one of the three Team PNoy candidates who did not win in the elections. The other two were Madrigal and former Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros who was the target of a campaign by the Catholic Church for championing the Reproductive Health bill which was against the teaching of the church.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)  on Monday said no passport will be issued to former police officer and fugitive double murder suspect Cezar Mancao, who is reportedly planning to flee the country.
Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez also assured that all mechanisms are in place to ensure that Mancao will not be able to obtain a passport even under a fictitious name or assumed identity.
“Cezar Mancao is currently on our lookout list. We will not issue him a passport until the case against him is dismissed or if he is acquitted,” Hernandez told a press briefing.
Mancao, a suspect in the twin killings of publicist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito, escaped from detention at the National Bureau of Investigation on May 2.
Hernandez said Mancao does not have an existing valid passport as it has been cancelled by the DFA after he was charged in court.
He said the DFA is strictly implementing measures to make sure that all applicants are identified.
“We are making sure that all applicants are identified accurately so that people who are barred from leaving the country will not be able to secure a passport under an assumed identity,” Hernandez said.      

Judges who refused to issue warrant for the police to search the compound of Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. have a lot of explaining to do, Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas said yesterday.
Roxas said they have coursed the legal action to the Department of Justice against the judges who refused to issue warrants.
“Maybe the judges should be answerable why they did not issue warrant despite witnesses including media who saw armed men with high powered automatic firearms inside the compound,” Roxas told to reporters in a chance interview.
He said some of the firearms were spotted inside the vehicle while it is parked beside the residence of the lawmaker.
Those collared for questioning allegedly introduced themselves as agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) but it turned out that they were not organic members of the agency.
Those arrested who failed to show gun ban exemptions from the Commission on Elections and from the Firearms and Explosives Office of the Philippine National Police were just confidential agents of NBI.
The NBI clarified that can no longer act as confidential agents of the agency as these have all been revoked by Justice department.
“That is a normal police procedure or operation and I leave it to the ground commanders on what has  to be done,” Roxas pointed out.
When asked if Roxas had communicated with his former colleague in the Senate, he said Revilla texted him at the height of the standoff, claiming that he is not a political enemy or threat to the government.
Roxas claimed that he replied that the government is not treating them as political enemy but explained are just acting on reports received that heavily armed men are present inside the Revilla compound.
He said that what police did was based on their mission order to secure the area while waiting for the needed search warrant which did not materialize.
Sensing that judges will no longer issue warrants, the ground commander was eventually ordered to pull out his men from the area. 

In defiance of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc, the Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBoC) of Marinduque composed of Regional Director Emmanuel Ignacio (who replaced provincial election supervisor Edwin Villa), Prosecutor Bimbo Mercado and Magdalena Lim, proclaimed candidate Regina Ongsiako-Reyes as the elected winner for the position of representative of the lone district of Marinduque in Boac, Marinduque.
Re-electionist Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Jay Velasco protested the proclamation and viewed the same as “highly irregular, illegal and premature” in view of the Comelec May l4, 20l3 ruling.
Velasco, son of Supreme Court Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco, stressed that the PBoC should have suspended the proclamation in the meantime to await whatever action the SC may take on the challenged resolution.
Early on, the Comelec issued a resolution last May l4 denying with finality the motion for reconsideration of Reyes of the March 27, 20l3 Resolution finding her to be a US citizen and ineligible for the position of representative. She admitted she did not avail of Republic Act 9225 for the reacquisition of Philippine citizenship.
Velasco sought the annulment of the Reyes proclamation for being null and void and without any legal and constitutional basis since Reyes is not qualified for the position.
The Marinduque solon vowed to take necessary legal actions against the “higly anomalous and premature” proclamation of Reyes.
Velasco lamented that Marinduqueños are bewildered by the Reyes proclamation since the PBoC is under the Comelec en banc and is required to comply with and obey all resolutions and orders of the commission.
“They are aghast at the thought that a US citizen will not represent them in the House of Representatives in violation of Section 6, Article VI of the Constitution that only a natural-born Filipino citizen is qualified to become a congressman,” Velasco said.

The recently-concluded mid-term elections, while most would view the results of the senatorial race as a vote of confidence on President Aquino, still proved that celebrity status and political dynasty prevailed, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago said yesterday.
Based on the votes cast on the winning senators, majority of the voting populace chose their candidates not on their respective positions on various issues and problems confronting the country, the senator said.
“That’s why the solution to the problem is No. 1, voter education and No. 2, candidate education,” Santiago said.
“What I can say about this year’s elections is the same as that what the Bible says that there’s nothing new under the sun. In the American expression, it’s ‘same old, same old.’ Same old thing or same difference. In other words, there’s no real change. There’s no real change in the political mentality of our people, both for those voting and those being voted upon,” Santiago said in a radio interview over  dzBB.
All six re-electionist members of the upper chamber were given a fresh six-year mandate while the remaining six are composed of one former and two graduating members of the House of Representatives while the three others are considered “neophytes” or first-timers in the field of legislature.
Senator-elect Cynthia Villar, a former congresswoman, is the wife of “graduating” Sen. Manny Villar while eight other winning senators are considered “second generation” politicians such as re-elected Senators Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, Francis “Chiz” Escudero and Alan Peter Cayetano; Senators-elect Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito Estrada, Nancy Binay and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV.
“Our electoral values are wrong, because we didn’t hail on the competence, honesty and efficiency. We only based on celebrity and dynasty. So how can they help in solving the problems of the country?
“The thing is, all the candidates say they are against corruption. The question there should be what have you done so far? Or what are the indications in your career that you wil fight corruption? They made promises in their campaign rallies regarding education, increased benefits, free education and healthcare, mass housing. But where will they source the funds for these programs? Candidates did not explain how they intend to carry out their promises,” she pointed out.
Santiago called on the newly-elected colleagues, especially those without known background in legislative work and duties, to seriously consider taking a crash course on public administration.
Santiago added that while one of the factors considered in the “accomplishments” of a lawmaker is the number of bills and resolutions filed, it’s not the end all or be all in gauging the achievements of a Congress member.
“The real yardstick for the success of a senator, his brilliance and his competence during the Senate debates. Well of course the priority should be given to those who have never had any legislative experience. Priority I mean on public opinion and public attention,” she said.
Santiago said her doors are always open to those who would want her to be their “tutor” as she herself sought out the assistance of experienced ones when she was still new in the Senate, in particular, the late Sen. Arturo Tolentino who was once a Senate president.
“I’m willing to share them my knowledge (in lawmaking), if they want to,” the senator said, emphasizing that she’s not trying to impose herself on them.
The feisty senator who is also known in engaging her colleagues in a spirited floor debates, is not about to give the neophyte-colleagues a baptism of fire of sort, saying that they should be accommodating to them and try to instill on them on how to be a statesman in and out of the plenary hall.
Santiago noted though that the likes of Senators-elect Grace Poe, Binay and Aquino should consider taking up a crash course on public administration because the characteristics of an ideal senator is honesty and competence.
“Honesty means he’s not a thief. Competence is different from being qualified. Competence means two things, having academic excellence, not just a (college) graduate but you graduated with honors from reputable universities not just here but abroad. Competence not just based on academic excellence but professional excellence as well,” Santiago said.

With a hefty amount of P600 million allocation, the peace process of President Aquino with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is set to roll in July, presidential deputy spokesman Abigail Valte said.  
Valte said that Secretary to the Cabinet Rene Almendraz confirmed there would be an scheduled meeting with the MILF in Cotabato City in July to further discuss matters on Bangsamoro Sajahatra project.
“There will be a two-day joint coordinating committee meeting between the government of the Philippines and the MILF in preparation for the provincial caravans of the program,” Valte said.
On April 15, six months after the signing of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB) on Oct. 15, 2012 and four months past their supposed yearend 2012 deadline to finish the four annexes that would complete the comprehensive peace agreement, the government (GRP) and the MILF peace panels have signed five documents except the most important: the Annexes on Power-sharing, Wealth-sharing and Normalization.
Within the six-month period, the peace panels signed one Annex – on Transition Arrangements and Modalities; three Terms of References – for the Third Party Monitoring Team (TPMT), the Independent Commission on Policing (ICP), and the Sajahatra Bangsamoro; and a certificate extending the tours of duty of the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team (IMT) up to March 2014 and the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) until Feb. 14, 2014  “in recognition of their important roles in the peace process, without prejudice to adjustments that may be needed pursuant to developments in the crafting of the Annexes to the FAB.”
In the FAB, Aquino on Dec. 17 issued Executive Order (EO) 120 creating the Transition Commission (TransCom).
But Iqbal on April 3 said that “we cannot proceed to discuss the substantive issues unless the three remaining annexes will be discussed and signed by the parties.”
Both panels had agreed to “meet again after the May 13 Philippine elections” and “exchange notes” between now and their next meeting, through the Malaysian facilitator.
Valte said the caravan which would go around the “identified communities which include Tawi-Tawi, Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Sulu, Zamboanga Sibugay, South Cotabato,  Davao Oriental, North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte and Maguindanao.”
She said once the caravan for the Sajahatra project had already started in July, the TransCom works would have to continue until the month of November.
Earlier, Iqbal had complained that the TransCom had no funds to perform their functions in holding meetings, that the Aquino administration had not acted on his letter asking for a P100-million budget.
Budget Secretary Butch Abad said that Iqbal had to submit a summary of list on how they would spend the government money.
Abad explained for Iqbal to understand that there must be government procedures which have to be followed in the disbursement of funds.
A few days before the election, Almendras declared that Malacañang had already approved an allocation of not P100 but P600 million instead for the expenses of the Sajahatra project.