Have you seen a naughty cat playfully harass a hapless mouse? The cat tosses and shoves the poor mouse around, like a rag doll, until the mouse is so tired it can’t dodge the predator cat anymore. That is what China is doing to the Philippines. That is what the new superpower is doing with tiny Philippines over… Read More »
Renato Corona is a giant of a man. He towers above practically all whom he talks to. He’s easily over 200 pounds, perhaps 230, 240. His full crop of hair and his taut and smooth face belie his 63 years. He walks with an awkward gait, like one who treads a bed of hot coal or of broken… Read More »
As I’m writing this, Philippine Chief Justice Renato Corona was convicted a few hours earlier of “culpable violation of the Constitution” for not disclosing close to 200 million pesos of his wealth as required by law. The overwhelming vote of 20-3 by the Philippine Senate ended the impeachment saga of the chief magistrate, an appointee and favorite of… Read More »
The other contestants on American Idol should file a complaint against Jessica Sanchez for falsifying her age. There’s no way she’s only 16 years old. No one can be 16 and sing like that! By the time you’re reading this, American Idol (you know, that singing contest south of the border) will be very close to its finale,… Read More »
It may not be so apparent but President Aquino is under siege from many sides. Observer wonders if he’ll survive for long. A reformist president will attract opposition, some virulent, sooner or later. Mr. Aquino ran under the banner of a crusade to clean up government, identify past plunderers and lock them up for a long time. Already… Read More »
MANILA The chief justice’s impeachment trial here has put the nation in suspended animation after taking a break as Filipinos observe Lent. The Senate serving as an impeachment court went on recess last March 22 until May 7 and left the people hanging as the fate of Chief Justice Renato Corona remained unresolved. The defense spent the two… Read More »
MANILA The prosecution rested its case on the seventh week of the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona after presenting only three of its eight articles of impeachment. But that was not the big news here. The headline news was the confrontation between Sen. Miriam Santiago and a private prosecutor over courtroom behavior. Santiago is a loud,… Read More »
MANILA Chief Justice Renato Corona’s impeachment here has taken a nasty turn. President Benigno Aquino III and Corona have stooped low, calling each other names. In an ugly retort to Mr. Aquino’s recent attacks against him, Corona urged the President to disclose his own statement of assets. Worse, Corona challenged Aquino to also disclose his psychological profile. The… Read More »
MANILA In the continuing impeachment trial here of the country’s Chief Justice, the prosecuting panel has been soundly routed by the courtroom-savvy private lawyers of the defense. It’s been a one-sided shootout so far. Chief Justice Renato Corona is on the impeachment dock for violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and graft and corruption. This breaks… Read More »
MANILA In an ironic twist in the checkered history of the Philippine justice system, the nation’s Chief Justice has found himself on the dock for impeachable offenses. Chief Justice Renato Corona has been impeached by the House of Representative and is currently being tried in the Senate as called for by the Philippine Constitution. The broad charges are… Read More »