Faces of the news

Paulyn Ubial

The rejection may have been expected, but when the majority of the Commission on Appointments (CA) voted to disapprove her appointment, it still hurt. In fact, Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial left soon after the CA committee hearing and skipped the plenary announcement of her rejection. Much of the opposition reportedly had to do with the power struggle in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., which she concurrently chaired in an acting capacity. Still, she found comfort in the thought that some CA members were supportive of her. “That’s life,” she said. It won’t be the end of her career as a health advocate. She’s eyeing a return to the Doctors to the Barrios program, her first choice of work. Ubial became the fifth official to be booted out of the Duterte Cabinet by the powerful congressional body.

Ralph Trangia

Amid the furor over the Sept. 17 fatal hazing of University of Santos Tomas law freshman Horacio “Atio” Castillo III, Ralph Trangia and his mother quietly sneaked out of the country for the United States. As investigators dug deeper, he emerged as one of the suspects in the case. Nearly a month later, he and his mother flew back last Tuesday, but Trangia remained tight-lipped to reporters who had waited long to hear a statement from him that could somehow shed light on the circumstances of Castillo’s death. He and his mother, Rosemarie, had come home to face the charges and prove their innocence, their lawyer curtly told reporters. Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, however, dropped hints that there could be more to Trangia’s homecoming than meets the eye. He could be a potential witness, Aguirre said.

Florin Hilbay

Despite his dogged efforts, former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay failed to sway the Supreme Court into tossing out the drug trafficking charges against opposition Sen. Leila de Lima, who has been held in Camp Crame since February. Reiterating his client’s claim of innocence, the ex-top state lawyer warned that the tribunal’s landmark ruling did not only help ensure that President Duterte’s most vocal critic is kept in jail—it also authorized the government to prosecute anyone on drug charges even without presenting the corpus delicti (body of crime). As what he had told the magistrates during the oral arguments, Hilbay stressed that the state prosecutors failed to show what kind of narcotics De Lima supposedly peddled to warrant her indictment, overriding one of the major requirements set by the law in prosecuting drug cases.

Andres Bautista

Some watched in shock as the majority of the House lawmakers on Wednesday voted in plenary to reverse the justice committee’s finding that the impeachment complaint against Commission on Elections Chair Andres Bautista was insufficient in form, and to send the articles of impeachment to the Senate on the last session day of Congress. Hours earlier, Bautista announced he would resign his post effective Dec. 31 following allegations by his estranged wife that he had amassed ill-gotten wealth. It took some time before Bautista could react to the sudden turn of events. When he did, he soberly called the move “unfortunate,” but vowed to abide by the Constitution and the rules on impeachment. His family believed it was meant to shame him. To observers, it could be the House’s show of its power and might to impeach key government officials.

Matt Nieto

Pulling his team back from the brink of defeat, Matt Nieto turned up as the surprise hero in Ateneo’s thrilling triumph over rival La Salle in the UAAP Season 80 men’s basketball tournament. The 19-year-old point guard made a crucial defensive stop before nailing two clutch free throws with 3.9 seconds left as the Blue Eagles escaped the Green Archers, 76-75, to complete a 7-0 sweep of the first round. “We were lucky in that last play,” Nieto said. The defending champion Archers, up by a point with just 9 seconds left, looked all set to deal the Eagles’ first loss of the season. But Nieto deflected an inbound pass by La Salle’s Kib Montalbo, recovered possession and got fouled, which led to the pressure-packed trip to the free-throw line. “I was just relaxed,” said Nieto, who also topscored with 16 points.

Lee Van Corteza

Winning right on his tournament debut, Lee Van Corteza emerged as the first Asian champion of Bottledeck.net 77th World 14.1 in New York City. The pride of Davao City stunned German Thorsten Hohmann, 300-183, in the finals of one of the world’s toughest pool events. “I just tried to stay focused,” said Corteza, a five-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist. “Straight pool takes a lot of concentration.” The 38-year-old played a total of 13 matches and pocketed nearly 2,000 balls. Corteza eclipsed the previous best finish of Filipino legends Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante, who settled for runner-up honors a decade ago. Before downing Hohmann, a four-time champion, Corteza subdued Scotsman Jonni Fulcher, 200-145, in the semifinals and American Max Eberle, 200-44, in the quarterfinals.