Police uncover dating app drug trade; 2 suspects busted
MANILA, Philippines – Police arrested two newly-identified drug suspects in Quezon City Wednesday night for allegedly peddling shabu (crystal meth) through a dating app. Lt. Col. Jeffrey Bilaro, station commander of the Quezon City Police District’s Project 4 station, identified the arrested suspects as Rowell Pagsolingan, 34, and Ralph Duran, 33. Bilaro told INQUIRER.net that an undercover police officer created a fake account and negotiated with suspects through a dating app. During the meetup, Pagsolingan and Duran were arrested after handing over several sachets of shabu to the undercover police officer. Recovered from the arrested suspects were 4.05 grams of shabu worth P27,540 and marked peso bills.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 17, 2019 01:18 UTC
UK PM briefs allies as Brexit talks go to the wire
UK PM briefs allies as Brexit talks go to the wire 0 SHARES Share it! Johnson also held talks earlier with leaders of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) — the third such meeting in three days. The DUP, which props up Johnson’s minority government in parliament, is central to talks about future arrangements for the border between EU member Ireland and British-run Northern Ireland. London initially proposed for the entire UK — including Northern Ireland — to leave the EU’s customs union, suggesting there must be customs checks somewhere on goods crossing between north and south. Johnson is bound by law to ask Brussels for an extension to talks by October 19 if no deal is reached.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 17, 2019 01:07 UTC
Vapes, HTPs should be slapped with cigarette taxes – group
Vapes, HTPs should be slapped with cigarette taxes – group 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy Analou De VeraHealth advocates on Wednesday said that heated tobacco products (HTPs) and vapor products should also be slapped with the same tax rates imposed on traditional cigarettes. “HTPs and vapes must be treated as substitutes to traditional cigarettes and, therefore, should be taxed equivalently,” said Mercado. “We support proposals to align the excise tax rates of HTPs and vapes with regular cigarettes at P45,” he added. “The latest news in the United States has seen around 1,300 cases of preventable illness due to vaping, and 26 people have already died,” he added.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 17, 2019 00:45 UTC
Two years since the end of the Marawi siege: What's changed?
Two years since the end of the Marawi siege: What's changed? Related Stories After 2 years, Marawi still in ruinsMeanwhile, many of the 370,000 internally displaced persons have not returned to their homes. The Philippines Humanitarian Country Team in its 2019 Marawi Humanitarian Response, Early Recovery and Resources Overview estimated that some 230,250 people have returned to the 72 barangays in the city. Marawi City Mayor Majul Gandamra on Wednesday also admitted to green-lighting the demolition of public structures within the city despite not having some residents’ full consent. According to the 2019 GRID, the full rehabilitation of Marawi is still likely to take years.
Source:Philippine Star
October 17, 2019 00:45 UTC
Right-wing extremist threat rising in Australia: spy agency
Right-wing extremist threat rising in Australia: spy agency 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy Agence France-PresseRight-wing terrorists pose a growing threat in Australia, the country’s spy agency has warned, describing the extremist networks as “more cohesive and organized” than ever. “The threat from the extreme right-wing in Australia has increased in recent years,” it said. ASIO said the overall terrorist threat in Australia “remains elevated” on the basis of intelligence that “indicates an intention and capability to conduct a terrorist attack in Australia”. Australia introduced controversial new counter-terrorism laws in July that ban citizens who fought for the Islamic State from returning home for up to two years.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 17, 2019 00:33 UTC
PNP-CIDG should ‘perpetuate’ testimonies of witnesses vs. ‘ninja cops’ – DOJ
PNP-CIDG should ‘perpetuate’ testimonies of witnesses vs. ‘ninja cops’ – DOJ 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy Jeffrey DamicogThe Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) should secure the testimonies of police officers and barangay officials who first arrested suspected drug lord Johnson Lee in Pampanga in 2013. The Senate blue ribbon committee chaired by Gordon has been conducting investigative hearings on the “ninja cops” issue. “However, should the DOJ eventually find probable cause against the respondents, the DOJ will consider all manner of preserving and perpetuating the testimony of the prosecution’s witnesses, including depositions before or pending action,” he assured. Instead of Lee, the respondents arrested another foreigner identified as Ding Wenkun.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 17, 2019 00:33 UTC
‘Perla’ not expected to intensify into tropical storm – Pagasa
MANILA, Philippines – Tropical Depression Perla is not expected to further intensify into a tropical storm, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported Thursday. The state weather bureau said “Perla” was 910 kilometers east of Tuguegarao City, Cagayan as of 4 a.m. Thursday. The storm has no direct effect on the country, hence, no tropical cyclone wind signal has been raised in any part of the country. Metro Manila and most parts of Luzon are expected to have generally fair weather, Pagasa said. Pagasa also raised a gale warning over Batanes, Cagayan, Babuyan Island, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, and Pangasinan, with 2.8 to 4.5-meter waves expected.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 17, 2019 00:22 UTC
Use of offensive word ‘faggot’
Would Tulfo then state, “Heterosexuals should be forbidden in armed services”? Actually, if we forbid everyone — of all sexual or no sexual orientations to serve in the armed services — there would no armed services, and thus no wars! 4th Class Darwin] Dormitorio were not faggots, then why would they take an interest in the genitals of another man?” highly offensive. Why does a newspaper of the caliber of The Manila Times allow the unedited use of the word “faggot”, and not f****t? The mob would cry out, “Burn, faggot, burn,” and so, in time, as words evolve, “faggot” came to be applied also to the person being burned — the homosexual.
Source:Manila Times
October 16, 2019 23:35 UTC
Japanese PM sends offering to war-dead shrine but will not visit: Kyodo
Japanese PM sends offering to war-dead shrine but will not visit: Kyodo 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy ReutersTOKYO– Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent an offering to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine for war dead on Thursday but will not visit what Japan’s neighbors view as a symbol of its past military aggression, media reported. Abe had a “masakaki” ceremonial evergreen branch sent to the shrine for the autumn festival that runs until Sunday, Kyodo News reported. He has visited the shrine in person only once since taking office in 2012 but has regularly sent offerings on Aug. 15, the anniversary of Japan’s World War Two surrender, and during the shrine’s spring and autumn festivals.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 23:26 UTC
Spain confirms king to make historic trip to Havana in November
Spain confirms king to make historic trip to Havana in November 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy ReutersHAVANA – Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia will visit Cuba in November for the commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the founding of Havana, Spain’s Foreign Minister Josep Borrell confirmed on Wednesday during a trip to Havana. Spain and its former colony have improved ties in recent years within the broader normalization of relations between the European Union and Cuba. This will be the first time a Spanish king makes an official visit to the island. Former US President Barack Obama, who sought to normalize relations between the former Cold War foes, visited Havana in 2016.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 23:15 UTC
US tells Chinese diplomats to give notice of meetings
US tells Chinese diplomats to give notice of meetings 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy ReutersWASHINGTON (Reuters) – Chinese diplomats in the United States must now give advance notice of any meetings with state, local and municipal officials, as well as at educational and research institutions, senior State Department officials said on Wednesday. In a post on Twitter, China’s embassy in Washington said the “latest restrictions” on Chinese diplomats were in violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The State Department officials said the onus would be on Chinese diplomats and officials to notify the State Department of their planned meetings in the United States. They would not discuss the consequences for any Chinese official who does not comply with the new requirement, which went into effect on Wednesday.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 22:52 UTC
US boxer Patrick Day dies from brain injuries after fight
LOS ANGELES, United States — American boxer Patrick Day died Wednesday after suffering a serious brain injury during his knockout defeat to Charles Conwell last weekend, promoter Lou DiBella said in a statement. Day, who had been in a coma following surgery at Northwestern Memorial hospital, died surrounded by family and friends. Seconds later Conwell rocked Day with a massive left hook that resulted in Day falling backwards and his head bouncing off the canvas. Day is at least the third boxer to die from injuries sustained in the ring this year. Santillan's death came just two days after Russian fighter Maxim Dadashev died from brain injuries suffered in a fight in Maryland.
Source:Philippine Star
October 16, 2019 22:52 UTC
Trump, Pelosi clash in heated White House meeting on Syria
Trump, Pelosi clash in heated White House meeting on Syria 0 SHARES Share it! He called her a third-rate politician,” said Schumer after they abruptly left the White House meeting on Trump’s controversial troop pullout from northern Syria. House veteran Steny Hoyer, the number two Democrat, said he and others were “offended deeply” by Trump’s treatment of Pelosi. Trump has repeatedly disparaged Pelosi on Twitter in the weeks since the probe began. Hoyer sounded alarmed at the intensity of the White House confrontation.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 22:18 UTC
UN Security Council warns of Syria jihadists ‘dispersion’ risk
UN Security Council warns of Syria jihadists ‘dispersion’ risk 0 SHARES Share it! “Members of the Security Council expressed deep concerns over the risks of dispersion of terrorists from UN-designated groups, including ISIL,” the statement said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group. But Council members agreed on the danger of IS regrouping, summed up a Western ambassador, who requested anonymity. The unanimity expressed by Council members Wednesday, although confined to the subject of jihadists, contrasted with initial reactions at the UN late last week. Europeans and Americans on the Security Council have since been coordinating their efforts more closely, a Western diplomat said under cover of anonymity.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 21:56 UTC
Obama urges Canadians to back Trudeau for another term
Obama urges Canadians to back Trudeau for another term 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy Agence France-PresseFormer US president Barack Obama on Wednesday urged Canadian voters to back Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for another term, calling him an “effective leader.”“I was proud to work with Justin Trudeau as President. He’s a hard-working, effective leader who takes on big issues like climate change,” Obama said in a tweet. Four months later, Trudeau became the first Canadian leader in 20 years to make an official pomp-filled visit to the White House. Obama saluted Trudeau as his political and generational kin, even though the American is 10 years older.
Source:Manila Bulletin
October 16, 2019 21:45 UTC