* Looks hale and happy By Ivy Tejano PASAY CITY — Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte appeared in person at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday, Sept. 16, for the first time since he was kidnapped and flown by private jet to The Hague, Netherlands on March 2025. The former Chief Executive attended the…
There is something profoundly unsettling when a legal argument begins to sound less like an honest search for what the law requires and more like an exercise in finding a convenient justification for what politics demands. This becomes even more disappointing when the argument comes from someone who has spent a lifetime in the legal…
Senator Christopher “Bong” Go extended his deepest sympathies to the family of Ramil Ortiz, who lost his life in a fire incident in Pagadian City, and arranged for assistance to help his grieving loved ones during their time of bereavement. Ortiz, 51, passed away on September 12 following the fire. Reports surrounding the tragedy also…
PASAY CITY — Journalists urged on Wednesday, to carefully check companies’ claims about their environmental programs to avoid reporting greenwashing, experts said. Speaking at the Net Zero Media Academy in Pasay City, Ludwig Federigan, columnist of the Manila Times, said greenwashing occurs when companies make themselves appear more environmentally responsible than their actions or results…
As Dean of the Jose Maria College of Law, Davao City, I believe that the constitutional requirement of a two-thirds vote of all the Members of the Senate for conviction in an impeachment case must be strictly, faithfully, and solemnly observed. This is not a novel constitutional question, nor is the requirement peculiar to the…
Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero is pushing for the rapid, nationwide rollout of the government’s maritime digital passenger manifest system after the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) raised the possibility that the ill-fated MV June Aster may have been carrying more passengers than its official manifest recorded. According to Escudero, the recent sea tragedy in Coron, Palawan…
Photo courtesy: AP An impeachment trial should be about evidence—not about forcing the accused to become the prosecution’s missing witness. After weeks of hearings, hostile witnesses, heated exchanges and mountains of allegations, one might have expected the prosecution’s case to become increasingly compelling. Instead, the latest development raises a very different question. The prosecution has…
* Pushes more opportunities for deserving students Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go welcomed the Senate’s approval on third and final reading of Senate Bill No. 2410, or the proposed Presidential Merit Scholarship Program Act, which seeks to institutionalize a national scholarship program for academically outstanding Filipino students who need financial assistance to pursue higher education. Go…
Photo courtesy: Human Rights Watch By Ivy Tejano DAVAO CITY – Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have asked the court to allow the use of previously recorded testimony from the key witness in the case against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. The Office of the Prosecutor filed the request under Rule 68(3), seeking…
There is something deeply troubling when a prosecution begins to look less like a search for truth and more like a prolonged exercise in political destruction. Let us be clear: accountability is indispensable to democracy. No public official—regardless of position, popularity, or political affiliation—should be above the law. If there are credible allegations of wrongdoing,…
