NEWS BRIEFS

JEEPNEY BAN

MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes yesterday said he hoped that there would be an amendment of the city terminal ordinance allowing Mandaue City jeepneys to ply Cebu City routes.

Cortes said he wanted the amendment because it could help the riding public.

He said he was grateful of the recent development where the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management lifted the ban on jeepneys plying the Mandaue-Manalili route. Reporter Jucell Marie P. Cuyos

SC RULING

SUPREME Court dismissed the petition for certiorari of ecology lawyer Gloria Estenzo-Ramos.

This was the Aug. 24, 2011, “Entry of Judgment” of SC en banc on the petition.

It stated that “the court resolved to dismiss the petition for failure to provide a complete statement of the material dates and for failure to sufficiently show that any grave abuse of discretion was committed by the Office of the Ombudsman in rendering the challenged decision which, on the contrary, appears to be in accord with the facts and applicable law and jurisprudence”.

Capitol spokesman Rory Jon Sepulveda said the decision of the SC was “final.”

The petition filed by the Global Legal Action Against Climate Change (GLACC) led by Ramos stemmed from the Capitol’s alleged failure in 2009 to provide them documents on an agreement with the Korean Electric Co. to build a coal ash waste facility in barangay Tina-an, Naga City. Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus

CITIES OF LIFE

CEBU City reaffirmed its pro-life stance on abortion and capital punishment as the city marks its first year as a member of the “Cities for Life” with a Mass at the St. Joseph’s Chapel of the Archbishop’s Residence in D. Jakosalem Street, Cebu City.

“Our goal is to promote the culture of life and spread awareness among people that through repentance and reconciliation, we can achieve justice,” said Fr. Paolo Cristiano, the first crusader of the movement the Community of San’t Egidio.

On Nov. 30, a total of 1,300 member Cities of Life around the world will light a symbolic monument to express the movement’s stand renouncing the death penalty.

Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma will lead the lighting of the symbolic monument.

“If we say no to death penalty, we may also say yes that there are many ways to make life beautiful and meaningful because we live life to the fullest,” said Palma.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, who attended the activity, also condemned vigilante killings in the city.

The other member cities in the Philippines are Manila, Mandaluyong, Talisay, Bataan and Puerto Princesa.  STC Intern Tweeny Malinao