. NEWS ROUNDUP .
SC issues TRO vs Pampanga election protest
THE Supreme Court yesterday issued a status quo ante order
directing the Commission of Elections to stop from proceeding with the petition
for an election recount filed by losing Pampanga gubernatorial candidate Lilia
Pineda.
The SC en banc granted the petition for a temporary
restraining order filed by Pampanga Gov. Eddie Panlilio enjoining the Comelec
from implementing the July 23 and August 1, 2007 resolutions which denied his
motion to stop the collection of ballot boxes preparatory to the recount as
sought by Pineda.
The high court also ordered the Comelec and Pineda to comment
on the petition within 10 days.
Panlilio told the SC that Pineda's poll protest was
"frivolous if not ridiculous" and an almost exact replica of the election
protest filed by her counsel for a different client in Taal, Batangas.
He said Pineda's claim that she was cheated in all 4,836
precincts without any objection from her watchers or without questioning before
the Boards of Election Inspectors in the said precincts is very incredible and
unbelievable. - Evangeline C. de Vera
Confiscation of Velarde assets with BDO gets
underway
EDGARDO Urieta, chief of the Sandiganbayan Sheriff and
Security Services Office, said his office will levy some P1.1 billion assets at
the Banco de Oro under the name of Jose Velarde beginning next week after the
issuance yesterday of an amended writ of execution.
"Ito lang ang inaantay namin. Ngayon, pwede na kaming pumunta
sa Banco de Oro," Urieta said.
The amended writ included the Velarde assets at the bank for
government forfeiture after declaring them part of the ill-gotten wealth of
deposed President Joseph Estrada who was convicted of plunder by the
Sandiganbayan Special Division last Sept. 12.
Gerardo Banzon, head of the bank's legal advisory and
research department, has confirmed that the stock investments and trust deposits
remain intact consisting of P500 million in promissory notes, Waterfront shares
worth P652.5 million and a common trust fund in the amount of P95.76 million.
In its September 12 verdict, the graft court ordered
confiscation of P545.3 million jueteng money, P189.7 million commission from
Belle Corp shares transactions, and the so-called Boracay Mansion in New Manila,
Quezon City.
So far, Urieta's office has only recovered P200 million
jueteng funds donated to the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, along with P15
million in interest earnings. - Peter J. G. Tabingo
Journalists ask court for access to Magdalo trial
JOURNALISTS assigned to cover the four-year-old coup d'etat
case of detained Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and 30 junior officers belonging to
the Magdalo group yesterday asked Makati regional trial court Judge Oscar
Pimentel to allow them "free and full access to witness, observe and cover the
court proceedings" when hearing resumes tomorrow after a month-long recess.
The journalists said they have been restricted by security
personnel to one side of the hallway outside the courtroom after the Nov. 29,
2007 incident when Trillanes walked out of the hearing with Gen. Danilo Lim in
tow.
The petitioners said their request is based on media
practitioners' Constitutional right to provide the public with information on
matters of public concern. They assured Pimentel that they will abide with
whatever "reasonable" limitations that would be imposed on them inside the
courtroom. - Ashzel Hachero
Jailer charged after 2
inmates die outside jail
A JAIL officer at the Taguig Police detention cell has been
charged criminally and administratively after two inmates he had let out of jail
to run some errands for him died in a motorcycle accident early Monday morning
in Barangay Ususan.
Supt. Alfred Corpus, Taguig police chief, said PO1 Roderick
Ivan Montaril, duty jailer, has been arrested and brought to the fiscal for
inquest.
Investigation showed that Montaril let out inmates Albert
Ago, 24, of Lower Bicutan; and Rodel Rellera, 21, of Ibayo-Tipas at around 1:45
a.m., gave them the keys to his motorcycle, and ordered them to buy him some
food. Ago was in for theft while Rellera was facing an attempted rape case. The
two were reportedly on their way to an eatery when the motorbike they were on
rammed a lamppost causing them fatal injuries.
Another inmate, Arnel Mendiola, said the two fatalities were in and out of
their cell, acting as Montaril's errand boys. - Ashzel Hachero
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