Opinion 12/5/15 (Philippines, presidential elections, Grace Poe, traffic, Manila, fire)

Inquirer Grace Poe and presidential candidacy disqualification

Disqualified from the presidential race by the Commission on Elections’ Second Division, Sen. Grace Poe isn’t about to throw in the towel. She is pinning her hopes on the Supreme Court, reminding the nation that her late father, Fernando Poe Jr., won his own case for Filipino citizenship in that tribunal. [...] The Comelec ruling throwing out the senator’s candidacy rested not only on grounds of citizenship—that she is not a natural-born citizen because she was a foundling—but also on a quite unrelated fact: that by allegedly writing on her certificate of candidacy that she was a resident of the Philippines for “6 years and 6 months,” she does not fulfill the constitutional requirement of a 10-year residency for a presidential candidate. [full text]

Sun.Star Cebu on the Rule of Law and Grace Poe

“Rule of law” seems to have become the forgotten principle as presidential contenders jockey for political advantage. This is a dangerous development because weakening its pursuit could lead to tyranny and push the country to anarchy. The point is, “rule of law” must be upheld at all costs. [...] While it is true that in recent surveys Poe has been the frontrunner, surveys do not determine the people's mandate—only elections do. [...] “Rule of law” seems to have also been forgotten in the current effort by Rodrigo Duterte to present himself as this country's savior. [full text]

Manila Bulletin about Manila traffic

After that brief respite during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) week in Metro Manila, traffic jams have returned with a vengeance and the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has come up with a new idea to ease city traffic for the holiday season. [...] The MMDA Traffic Engineering Center called for the stopping of all work on road works from midnight of December 14, 2015, to midnight of January 3, 2016. [full text]

Philippine Star on holiday fire

Air Force helicopters joined efforts to put out a fire that gutted about 500 homes and commercial structures in Quiapo, Manila yesterday. The fire, which started in a two-story house, left 1,000 families homeless. [...] Defective lights on a Christmas tree triggered the fire that spread through the second floor of the Makati home of then speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. and his wife Gina, killing their daughter KC a week before Christmas in 2004. [full text]