Faces of the news

ILLUSTRATION BY RENE ELEVERA

Francesco Molinari

Francesco Molinari, with his cool and calm demeanor, bagged on Sunday the British Open golf championship at Carnoustie after turning back golf’s greatest players—including Tiger Woods—to become Italy’s first winner of a golfing major. Closing out with a flawless two-under-par 69, Molinari thus entered the Top 6 in the world rankings while frustrating Woods and a score of other superstars from lifting the Claret Jug—the sport’s oldest trophy. Molinari played the final two rounds without dropping a shot. The 35-year-old hopes that his win will have an impact back home in Italy, where Formula 1 racing and football almost always grab the biggest headlines. Molinari is among the few golfers from continental Europe to win the event.

Samuel Martires

Barely a year after joining the Supreme Court as its 175th associate justice, Samuel Martires was tapped by President Duterte last Thursday to take on the gargantuan task of being the country’s chief graft buster. A former justice of the antigraft court Sandiganbayan, Martires takes over the post vacated by Conchita Carpio Morales, who had locked horns with Mr. Duterte over his brutal drug war before ending her seven-year term as Ombudsman. This early, detractors have described Martires as President Duterte’s attack dog against his political rivals, allegations that the new Ombudsman quickly countered with a declaration that he will not let himself be used in political bickering—a vow he’d have to prove in the months ahead of the 2019 elections.

Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Pantaleon Alvarez

Upstaging President Duterte’s third State of the Nation Address (Sona), former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her allies staged a coup and unseated Pantaleon Alvarez as House Speaker on Monday. The Sona was delayed by more than an hour as the two Duterte allies fought over the post as the country’s No. 4 leader on national TV. The power grab was hatched by Arroyo’s allies on Sunday, reportedly after receiving a call from the President’s daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara. The younger Duterte and Alvarez had been at odds since last year when he described her newly formed party, Hugpong ng Pagbabago (Alliance for Change) as part of the opposition. There was no love lost either between Alvarez and Arroyo, who lost her chairmanship in some House committees when she did not support the death penalty bill that Alvarez was pushing. A triumphant Imee Marcos was also seen celebrating after Arroyo was sworn in as the new Speaker, leading people to speculate that she had a hand, too, in the Alvarez ouster. After all, she had a very public falling out with Alvarez ally and Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas, who had grilled her on her alleged misuse of P66.4 million in tobacco excise tax funds when she purchased motor vehicles through cash advance. Arroyo’s ascendancy was met, however, with speculations that she was angling for the prime minister post should moves to have a federal form of government succeed. Arroyo has denied this.

Sara Duterte

Is this relative newcomer turning out to be the country’s new queenmaker? Sara Duterte, the Davao City mayor and daughter of President Duterte, was reported to be behind the move to unseat former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, the staunch ally of her father, whom she had quarrelled with a few months back. The mayor had kept mum about her role in the move that pushed the controversial former President, now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, back to power as Speaker, but Alvarez’s ouster was reported to have sent Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan members jumping ship to Sara’s new political party, Hugpong ng Pagbabago. Sara said she had not foreseen the growing interest of other politicians in her party, but said she had one advice for Alvarez: Do not mess with this girl.

Karen McDougal

Former Playboy model Karen McDougal was in the news again after the release of a secret recording of a conversation between US President Donald Trump and his estranged lawyer, Michael Cohen. The recording clearly shows that Trump and Cohen had paid McDougal to keep mum about the affair she supposedly had with Trump 12 years ago. In March, the 47-year-old model admitted in an interview that she “loved” Trump and didn’t want to destroy him. But she felt cheated because she was paid only half the $150,000 she was promised. Since released from the nondisclosure contract she had signed earlier, McDougal may yet inspire three other women to speak up about the hush money paid them before the 2016 US election.