October 2017 – ellen tordesillas

In the name of drugs again

Published by Ellen on October 27, 2017

President Duterte is simplifying the root cause of five-month war in Marawi by attributing it to drugs.

There’s a problem in this version because it does not address the age-old and complex issue of the tension in Mindanao which security experts say is mutating into a more dangerous terrorist movement.

In his speech at the Commemorative session of Asean Law Association Governing Council Wednesday, Duterte said, “How did the Marawi siege start? If I may ask you,’Do you know?’ It was started because the police went there to serve a warrant of arrest of one of the Mautes, for drugs. When they went there to serve the warrant, they were met with a volley of fire, they had to call in the Marines.”

Harry Roque as Duterte spokesman?

Published by Ellen on October 24, 2017

Roque captioned this Oct. 2016 photo: “Digong in introducing me:’Si Harry Roque is critical but I like him. He’s hard-hitting and very straight. We need more like him to deal with our problems. He’s a welcome guest to my entourage. He should continue hitting para hindi magkaleche-leche an gating bayan.’”

President Duterte last Sunday at the Masskara Festival in Bacolod City endorsed Kabayan Partylist Representative Harry Roque for senator in the 2019 senatorial elections.

At the start of his speech, he introduced Roque to the Negrenses by asking him to stand up: “ ‘Ti nga kandidato ko ni pagka-Senador, kadtong ngari ko ga…subong ga kampanya na. Wa pa ko nakalimot kay Harry, ha. Ano lang ‘yan. (He’s my candidate for senator. My coming is to… now I’m campaigning. I have not forgotten Harry.)

At that moment, I was texting Harry to verify talks going around that he would be replacing Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella. ( We tried to contact Secretary Abella to confirm this but didn’t get a reply.)

Here goes the CIA plot again

Published by Ellen on October 22, 2017

Pres. Duterte revived the CIA plot again in his speech during the 7th anniversary of the public service show, ‘Buhay OFW’, at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza October 18. Listening to him are Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II and Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III. Malacañang photo by Richard Madelo.

President Duterte’s paranoia about the CIA wanting him out is on overdrive again fueled by reports that Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV was in the United States where he met with an U.S. Republican senator that his foreign secretary, Alan Peter Cayetano had tried to meet but was not able to.

At the 7th anniversary of Buhay TV show last week, Duterte said, “Now they say that the CIA wanted me out of the government. I believe so but not really killing me but they could have — they would have preferred another one. But one thing is very sure is they do not like me; and I do not like them also.”

Don’t forget the unresolved 604 kilos of shabu

Published by Ellen on October 22, 2017

With so many issues cropping up every day, a controversy is usually good only for a week. Unresolved, it is set aside to make way for another controversy. Nobody gets punished, the culprit gets away with the crime. The problem stays and goes on.

The Gordon-led Blue Ribbon Committee, in its report more than a week ago on the 604 kilos of shabu that passed through the Bureau of Customs under the leadership of Nicanor Faeldon has found Davao City Councilor Small Abellera Jr. liable of direct bribery for allegedly accepting a P5-million bribe from customs broker Mark Taguba as enrollment fee with the Davao Group, which reportedly facilitates the release of shipments at the BOC.

Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the 604 kilos of shabu smuggling. Photo by Alexis Nuevaespaña

Yet, it cleared presidential son, Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and his brother-in-law, lawyer Manases Carpio of complicity with the Davao Group.

Something’s wrong here.

Founded on false hopes, sustained by more falsehood

Published by Ellen on October 16, 2017

Fake news. We have that in abundance direct from the President himself.

Now we have Fake Charge.

Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio minced no words in his 39-page dissenting opinion to the majority decision (9-6) upholding the warrant of arrest on Sen. Leila de Lima issued by the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court early this year on the charge that she engaged in illegal drug trading while she was secretary of justice.

“Based on the Information itself, the accusation of illegal trade of drugs against petitioner is blatantly a pure invention. This Court, the last bulwark of democracy and liberty in the land, should never countenance such a fake charge. To allow the continued detention of petitioner under this Information is one of the grossest injustices ever perpetrated in recent memory in full view of the Filipino nation and the entire world,” Carpio said.

Former Solgen proposes an Institute for the Integrity of Information

Published by Ellen on October 7, 2017

Former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay at the hearing of the Senate Committee
on Public Information and Mass Media.

I came out of the hearing by the Committee on Public Information and Mass Media on Fake News chaired by Sen. Grace Poe Wednesday stunned by the arrogance of persons hired by the government to handle social media.

The hearing could have been moderate3d much better but the best thing from that proceedings was the statement by former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay calling our attention to another form of impunity that we are witnessing aside from the thousands of killings on our streets – the death of truth.

Hilbay narrowed down on the real problem of the toxic environment: government dishonesty. He proposed the creation by Congress of the Institute for the Integrity of Information, “a sort of Ombudsman for public information provided by government, or an information police for government officials. “

Here’s the full text of Hilbay’s statement:

Not for lack of Duterte’s desire that Trillanes is alive

Published by Ellen on October 3, 2017

Honeylet Avanceña fixes the President’s barong before deplaning in Cambodia. May 2017. Looking on is their daughter, Veronica. Malacañang photo.

Cielito “Honeylet” Salvador Avanceña has weighed in on the more serious issues of her partner’s presidency.
And we are stunned by her logic.

In her talk with the members of the Philippine National Police Monday, Avanceña commented on the allegations that Duterte is a killer, a reputation that the President has cultivated by his boasts of having killed some persons.

Avanceña said, “You’ve seen it, Trillanes has been hitting us since a week before election. Eh bakit buhay pa siya? ‘Di ba? Wala naman nangyayari eh.”

Duterte’s threats betray panic

Published by Ellen on October 1, 2017

Behind President Duterte’s curse-laden talks is a man in panic.

And the one subject that drives him up the wall is his alleged huge bank deposits that Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV first exposed last week of April 2016, weeks before the election that he won.

The latest development is the receipt by the Office of the Ombudsman of his and his family bank records from the Anti-Money Laundering Council in connection with the plunder and graft complaints filed by Trillanes.

Pres. Duterte lambasts Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, Chief Justice Lourdes Sereno, and Overall Deputy Ombudsman Arthur Carandang before members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Davao City Chapter. Malacañang photo by Joey Dalumpines.

Probe finds PH Navy at fault in death of two Vietnamese fishermen

Published by Ellen on October 1, 2017

By Arianne Christian Tapao and Ellen T. Tordesillas
VERA Files

The Philippine Navy is at fault in the death of two fishermen during a sea chase in the waters of Pangasinan on Sept. 22, a source privy to the investigation of the incident said.

Investigators, the source said, cited a 1999 ruling of the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) that states: “In the conduct of arrest, use of excessive and unreasonable force in stopping and arresting a vessel such as firing with live ammunition using shots from large–caliber automatic guns must be avoided, and where force is unavoidable, it must not go beyond what is reasonable and necessary in the circumstances”.

The Philippine Coast Guard, which is investigating the incident, took note that the incident happened 39 nautical miles off Bolinao in Pangasinan, which was within the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines, the source further said.

Month: October 2017