2019: Who made it to PH headlines

MANILA, Philippines — There were the usual headliners – the tough-talker, rabble-rouser president, the soft-spoken fighter vice president, and others whose position in government would anyway land them on news pages.

And then there were the unexpected ones, whose extraordinary circumstances would lead them to 2019’s news headlines.

INQUIRER.net looks back on some of this year’s newsmakers.

Antonio Sanchez (Photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Antonio Sanchez

A murder-rape case that shocked the nation to its core in 1993 crawled its way back to the news front pages as the convicted mastermind in the gruesome deaths of University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) coed Eileen Sarmenta and Allan Gomez almost became a free man.

News of former Calauan town mayor Antonio Sanchez being set free sparked public outrage and also exposed issues in the country’s corrections system.

Sanchez was supposedly up for release under the good conduct time allowance (GCTA) law. But authorities would later withdraw this, saying that Sanchez was not eligible for early release under the law since he was convicted for a heinous crime.

The former mayor’s kin, however, claimed that Sanchez was indeed eligible for release, even saying a release order has already been issued for it.

It was not long before the Senate stepped in and launched a probe on the implementation of the GCTA law, and in the process revealed several more issues within the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor).

This led to the eventual dismissal of BuCor Director General Nicanor Faeldon and appointment of the current bureau head, Gerald Bantag.

President Rodrigo Duterte also called for nearly 2,000 heinous crime convicts released under GCTA law to surrender as authorities reviewed and cleaned up the list of those who were qualified to be freed under the law.

Many of those who surrendered, over three months after turning themselves to the authorities,  remained in jail as of this posting.

Oscar Albayalde

Oscar Albayalde

“Ninja cops” or the term used for law enforcers who pilfer and sell or profit from confiscated narcotics became popular after 13 policemen allegedly recycled 162 kilograms of “shabu” (crystal meth) seized in drug operations in Pampanga in 2013.

An offshoot of the Senate’s investigation on the GCTA law’s implementation, the ninja cops probe linked a familiar name: Gen. Oscar Albayalde, who was the Philippine National Police (PNP) chief when the inquiries were conducted.

Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, an ex-chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, alleged that Albayalde was among those who bought sport utility vehicles (SUVs) after the 2013 drug operation. Albayalde was the Pampanga Provincial Police Office chief when the raids took place in Mexico town.

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino, a former chief of the Central Luzon Police Regional Office, said Albayalde asked him then not to implement the dismissal order against the 13 so-called ninja cops involved in the operation.

Amid the issues, Albayalde stepped down from his post as PNP chief, ahead of his retirement.

Peter Joemel Advincula, alias “Bikoy,” —EDWIN BACASMAS

Jomel Advincula a.k.a. ‘Bikoy’

A series of videos of a hooded man named “Bikoy” accusing relatives of President Rodrigo Duterte and his allies of being involved in illegal drug trade made waves on social media in April.

Bikoy eventually unmasked himself and introduced himself as Peter Joemel Advincula in a move to seek legal assistance from the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) as he intended to file a case against those he linked to the illegal drug activities.

But as if the story could not get more complicated – with webs of names linked left and right – Advincula retracted his statements and pointed his finger to the opposition, who he claimed were the ones behind the release of the “Ang Totoong Narcolist” videos.

Advincula said the videos were only made to destroy administration candidates and tagged key members of the Liberal Party (LP) such as Senator Risa Hontiveros, Senator Leila de Lima, and opposition-allied incumbent Senator Antonio Trillanes IV.

In July, a sedition case was filed against Vice President Leni Robredo and 35 other individuals in relation to the videos. Robredo and other respondents vehemently denied the allegations against them.

Rappler CEO Maria Ressa (Photo by JAM STA. ROSA / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Maria Ressa

“It’s a shock, but we are going.”

These were the words uttered by internationally-renowned journalist and online news platform Rappler’s chief executive officer Maria Ressa, as agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) ushered her out of her news agency’s office in Pasig City and arrested her over a cyber libel charge on February 13.

The arrest sparked allegations that Ressa was targeted over criticisms of Duterte – allegations that the president himself denied, saying he does not know about Ressa’s case and arrest.

Rappler, which Duterte ordered to be banned from covering him and the Palace in 2018, labeled the case as “preposterous and baseless.”

A month after her initial arrest, Ressa was arrested again – this time, over an alleged violation of the Anti-Dummy Law and the Securities Regulations Code (SRC).

Ressa has since posted separate bails for her temporary liberty.

Photo by Ryan Leagogo/INQUIRER.net

Conchita Carpio Morales and Albert del Rosario

As former government officials, one would think that former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales and former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario would be out of the spotlight.

But Morales and Del Rosario made headlines when they filed a case before the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Chinese President Xi Jinping over the “atrocious actions of Chinese officials in the South China Sea and within Philippine territory.”

The case was filed on behalf of Filipinos who were allegedly “persecuted and injured’’ by China’s actions in the West Philippine Sea.

Merely two months after filing the case, Morales was barred from entering Hong Kong in May for being a “security threat” – a move that she branded as a form of bullying.

Morales said she believes her detention was related to the ICC case they filed.

Del Rosario was also denied entry in Hong Kong in June.

Gretchen Diez  INQUIRER.net file photo / Christia Marie Ramos

Gretchen Diez

In August, Gretchen Diez, a transgender woman, was about to enter a ladies’ room in a Cubao mall when she was accosted by a member of the cleaning crew.

The issue sparked discussions on the need for the passage of the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression (SOGIE) Bill that seeks to prohibit discrimination against sexual orientation.

While the bill has supporters in the Senate, some senators also seem lukewarm on the measure.

In September, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said at least 15 senators are against the bill.

This, despite presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo’s pronouncement that the bill has the support of President Rodrigo Duterte.

Edited by KGA