Good day. Here are the stories of The Manila Times for Friday, May 16, 2025.
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READ: De Lima acquittal overturned by CA
THE Court of Appeals (CA) has overturned the 2023 acquittal of former senator Leila de Lima and her former aide Ronnie Dayan in a drug trafficking case, citing grave abuse of discretion by the trial court and sending the matter back to square one. In a ruling written by Associate Justice Eleuterio Bathan, the appellate court’s Eighth Division granted the petition for certiorari filed by the Office of the Solicitor General. The decision nullifies the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Muntinlupa City Branch 204’s judgment that cleared de Lima and Dayan of allegations that they conspired to enable the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison during her time as Justice secretary. The Court of Appeals found that the RTC’s acquittal relied heavily and improperly on the recantation of former Bureau of Corrections official Rafael Ragos, who had earlier testified that he delivered drug money to de Lima. Ragos later said he was coerced into giving that testimony, a reversal the trial court accepted without fully examining its impact on the rest of the case. In a statement issued Thursday, De Lima said she would file a motion for reconsideration and would appeal the decision all the way to the Supreme Court, if necessary. De Lima, who will be a party-list representative in the House of Representatives in the incoming Congress, said the decision would not be an obstacle to her return to public service. De Lima has long insisted that the drug charges against her were politically motivated, orchestrated under Rodrigo Duterte’s administration as retribution for her outspoken criticism of the former president’s drug war.
READ: Court orders arrest of Roque, Ong
THE Angeles City Regional Trial Court (RTC) has ordered the arrest of former presidential spokesman Harry Roque and businesswoman Katherine Cassandra Li Ong in connection with a human trafficking case linked to illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hubs in Porac, Pampanga. Angeles City RTC Branch 118 issued the arrest warrants following the filing of 11 criminal cases under the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2012. The charges were based on findings from a series of raids on suspected POGO hubs where authorities reported uncovering widespread forced labor, illegal detention and other trafficking-related offenses. Prosecutors cited violations of Section 4(l) in relation to Section 6(c) of Republic Act 9208, which covers acts that facilitate trafficking such as recruitment and exploitation of persons. Several other individuals were named in the cases, including Sam Sy, or “Boss Eric,” and Terry Ye, or “Boss Terry,” as well as Norman Macapagal. The charge sheet includes a mix of Chinese and Filipinos implicated in running the illegal gaming hubs functioning under the guise of legitimate POGO firms. The issuance of the warrants marked a significant escalation in the government’s crackdown on illegal POGO operations. In recent months, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) have conducted sweeping raids in Pampanga, exposing a network of criminal activity involving not only trafficking but also cybercrime and financial fraud.
READ: ‘Duterte poll win doesn’t erase crimes’
FORMER president Rodrigo Duterte’s resounding election victory in Davao City carries no weight in the eyes of international justice, a lawyer for the families of victims in his bloody war on drugs said Thursday. Detained more than 10,000 kilometers away at the ICC Detention Center in the Netherlands, Duterte ran for — and won — his former post as Davao City mayor, a position he first held nearly four decades ago. Under different circumstances, it would have been his ninth term. But the former president now stands trial, accused of masterminding a brutal, state-sponsored campaign of extrajudicial killings during his six years in Malacañang. His landslide victory, defeating his own former Cabinet secretary Karlo Nograles by nearly eight to one, was certified this week by the Commission on Elections. The sheer scale of the win has reignited debate over Duterte’s enduring grip, not only on Davao City but on the national political landscape as well.
READ: Impeachment ‘self-inflicted’ wound – Tiangco
THE campaign manager of the Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas said the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte was the main reason they did not campaign in Mindanao, calling it a “self-inflicted wound” that led to the loss of some of their candidates. In an interview over radio DZBB, Navotas Rep. Tobias Tiangco said that once the impeachment complaint was filed and passed at the House of Representatives, he saw that Mindanao had solidified against them. He described the impeachment as “self-inflicted” by the administration that could have been prevented.
READ: ‘Programming errors led to discrepancies’
THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Thursday said programming errors led to the discrepancies pointed out by the election watchdog Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV). Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia said the problem was “more or less” similar to the reported 5 million votes difference between the Comelec transparency server and the Media server. On Thursday, the PPCRV said it received word from its Zamboanga City and Dumaguete City coordinators that some of the valid ballots that were cast were higher than the number of voters who actually voted. Speaking to reporters at their Command Center, a spokesman for the PPCRV, Ana Singson, said they want to understand what happened.
BUSINESS: Remittances higher in March at $3.13B
Topping business, money sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) rose in March compared to a month and a year earlier, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed on Thursday. At $3.13 billion, personal remittances were higher than the $3.024 billion recorded in February and also increased from the $3.051 billion seen in March 2024.
SPORTS: Toledo wins first crown in PCAP
Over to sports, the Toledo-Xignex Trojans finally won their first title in the Professional Chess Association of the Philippines (PCAP) online team chess tournament on Wednesday. Toledo dominated Pasig City in back-to-back matches in the finals, 13-8 and 14-7, using the Chess.com platform to claim the championship. Woman FIDE Master Cherry Ann Mejia humbled Woman National Master Rowelyn Acedo, 2-1, and International Master Joel Pimentel trounced Omar Bagalacsa, 3-0, to lead Toledo to victory in the first duel in the final round of the tournament sponsored by San Miguel Corporation, Ayaland and PCWorx. Mejia and Pimentel continued to carry the fight in the second showdown but this time, they got help from Grandmaster Oliver Barbosa and International Master Kim Yap to give the Trojans the decisive victories over the King Pirates.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Francisco Tatad are today’s front page columnists. Tiglao claims the hate against the Marcos is what prompted opposition candidates winning the midterm elections, while Tatad talks about a tale of two polls.
Today’s editorial discusses the shielding of elections from cyberattacks. Read more on the paper’s opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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