EMONG'S JOURNALS

The House of Representatives’ Committee on Legislative Franchises denied the application of media network ABS-CBN for a new 25-year franchise, with 70 committee members voting in favor of the resolution, 11 against it. Legal practitioners have suggested various remedies for ABS-CBN to have a franchise, including a very rigorous, back-breaking Constitutional recourse: the People’s Initiative. But this law is rife with complexities. What is People's Initiative People's Initiative (PI) is a provision in the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines allowing for a "people's initiative" as one of the modes for constitutional amendment: ART. 6, SECTION 32 The Congress shall, as early as possible, provide for a system of initiative and referendum, and the exceptions therefrom, whereby the people can directly propose and enact laws or approve or reject any act or law or part thereof passed by the Congress or local legislative body after the registration of a pe...

What went badly for ABS-CBN during the Congressional hearings of their franchise renewal?  We all saw the hearings at the House of Representatives for the renewal of the TV network's franchise where we sat in front of our televisions and saw, played out in front of our eyes, every ‘drama’ that can happen during a Congressional hearing. Committee members bringing in information and inquisitions, and some throwing bombshells that poleaxed most of us because they were completely shocking and unexpected. All this within 12 gruelling marathon hearings! The House Committee on Legislative Franchises voted 70-11, with two inhibitions and one abstention, adopting a resolution denying the franchise application of ABS-CBN Corporation to Construct, Install, Establish, Operate and Maintain Radio & Broadcasting Stations in the Philippines. The resolution was recommended by a three-person Technical Working Group (TWG) that summarized seven key issues taken up in deliberations in...

They've been the bane of motorists since time immemorial. Most motorists in the country have encountered that plague of a plate called "Protocol Plate Number 8." When they're not in their reckless, abusive mode, they use sirens and blinkers to intimidate motorists. In most cases, the vehicles with these protocol plates were reportedly being driven by people other than the authorized owner. But woe no more. House speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has ordered a recall of these protocol license plates because of news reports that vehicles carrying the number 8 plate were spotted in indecent places or figured in crime-related activities, according to a news article from ABS-CBN News . A memorandum dated Wed, Aug 24, instructed lawmakers with “protocol plates issued in the 16th Congress and earlier” to turn over the plates to the Office of the Secretary General. Condo Vibes List of low-numbered protocol plates In the 1960s, then President Carlos P. Garcia as...

EVER  experienced dining in a restaurant where the staff won't give you free drinking water -- and to make matters worse, even sell it to you for a price? Well, fret no more -- you will soon expect to be served with free clean and safe water when you dine in restaurants and eatery outlets. According to the Facebook Page of the House of Representatives , Rep. Evelio R. Leonardia (Lone District, Bacolod City) filed House Bill 5919, which mandates restaurants and food outlets to serve free safe and clean drinking water to their customers. Leonardia said safe and clean drinking water is a basic human need and that everywhere, be in the house or outside of home, a person will need water to supplement his/her body. "This is especially true when a person is, during and after, taking a meal or food in business establishments or outlets," Leonardia said. Leonardia said it has been the practice of some food establishments and eatery outlets not to serve drinking water...

FOND of making rude, insulting comments against somebody on Facebook and other social media networks? Better start breaking the habit as "cyberbullying" will soon become a criminal offense. According to a news article from Sun Star , Camarines Sur Representative Rolando Andaya Jr. filed House Bill 5718 to make accountable persons who make insulting and defamatory posts online against another individual. Under the proposed law, a penalty of P50,000 but not more than P100,000 and imprisonment of not less than six months but not more than six years, or both, shall be meted upon any person found guilty of cyber-bullying. Andaya said cyber-bullying is a problem generated from the advancement of technology and it has the potential to affect not only school-age children but also any individual who can access a mobile phone or the Internet. "The onset of the internet has shattered world barriers empowering users with immense information and allowed them to be social...

A t least that's what a new congressional bill is all about. Called House Bill (HB) 4932 authored by ATeacher party-list Reps. Julieta R. Cortuna and Mariano U. Piamonte Jr., the proposed law taps an ordinary citizen to make a lawful (citizen's) arrest on an individual coughing out too much vehicular smoke on the streets. This, they say, is a support for the government-backed law RA 8479 or the "Clean Air Act." HB 4932 further says that a cash reward amounting to P10,000 will be given a citizen who makes a legitimate arrest. The legitimacy of the arrest shall be determined by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and shall be the lead agency to order the payment of such reward. The reward will be tax-free. This is how it goes: Under the authority of the new law, the citizen will effect the arrest of a driver or operator of a smoke-belching vehicle. After the arrest, he/she will bring the arrested person and the vehicle to the ne...

N o garage, no car. This is what the new law on buying a car is all about. Called House Bill No. 5098 or "The Proof of Parking Space Act," filed by Valenzuela City Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian, the new measure shall require buyers of brand new cars, whether individual or firms, to execute an affidavit indicating the availability of existing parking space for the vehicle to be bought. In other words, if you don't have a parking space for a car, then you won't be allowed to buy one. The proposal was brought about by new statistics that by the year 2015, vehicle sales can reach to about 300,000 units. Logically, if buyers don't have their own garages, this cars will end up parked at side streets. In his website , Gatchalian explained “Although it is good news for the automotive industry, it is bad news for Metro Manila motorists and commuters who must brace themselves for slower traffic as more cars join the vehicle population,”   “And traffic congestion ...