EMONG'S JOURNALS

Here are ways to make your checkpoint nights trouble-free. The Commission on Elections will conduct checkpoints nationwide starting October 1, Sunday, to effectively implement the gun ban and other prohibitions in connection with the October 23 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections. During this period, it shall be unlawful for any person to bear, carry or transport firearms or other deadly weapons, unless authorized by the Comelec. All permit to carry licenses are automatically suspended. Violators will be punished one to six years of imprisonment, disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right to suffrage. Do you have to stop at a PNP-Comelec checkpoint? if you drive up to a Philippine National Police (PNP)-Comelec checkpoint, you have to stop the vehicle and comply with law enforcement. This is an exception to the normal rule that police officers cannot pull someone over without a reason. Because of the enforcement of the nationwide gun ban, thes...

She was true to her words, the last man standing in the vice presidential race is indeed a woman. On Friday, Leni Robredo finished with 14,418,817 votes beating her closest rival, Senator Bongbong Marcos who had 14,155,344. Robredo led Marcos by only 263,473 votes. According to GMA News , Marcos had a lead of 83,480 votes going into Friday's canvassing but this was immediately wiped out when the votes from Antique and Iloilo City were tallied. Robredo had a combined lead of more than 170,000 votes in the said areas. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, meanwhile, won the presidential race with 16,601,997 votes. "The last man standing is a woman" It was in April, during the televised HARAPAN vice presidential debate held at the ABS-CBN compound in Quezon City, when Robredo strongly articulated herself that she would win over her male VP rivals. It was here that she first said her famous line, "The last man standing is a woman" Watch the three-minu...

Two more days to go before the 2016 Presidential Elections on May 9 -- here's a step-by-step guide to help navigate yourself on what and what not to do when you vote. DO make sure that you are at the right place by looking for your name in the voters list posted near the precinct. DO come early. Voting starts at 6:00am and ends at 5:00pm. DO bring a list of your candidates to guide you, but DON'T bring in any campaign materials. DO protect your ballot by using the Comelec ballot secrecy folder. DON'T take photos or make copies of your ballot. These are election offenses and can send you to jail. DON'T use your cellphone while inside the precinct. Taking photos is an election offense. This is to prevent vote-buying and selling. DO shade properly using the Comelec marking pen and fully shade the circles next to candidate of your choice. DON'T use any kinds of pens other than the Comelec's. DON'T write anything else on the ballot so that the ma...

Enough with those silly 2016 election bickering. Let's hear some major comic laughs! UP student Joierie Ann Pacumio, who impersonated vice-presidential candidate Leni Robredo, literally brought the house down during the three-day "Live A.I.D.S. HA-LOL-AN" recently held at the Abelardo Hall of the University of the Philippines. Watch the video below and see for yourself. The "HA-LOL-AN 2016" is organized by UP SAMASKOM, a student organization based in UP College of Mass Communication. (screenshot from PalaBuzz Feed video)

'I did it in Davao. Why won't I do it everywhere else.' Presidential aspirant Rodrigo Duterte was referring to a country-wide curfew of until 1:00 am for all commercial establishments he's planning to enforce when elected President. Of course, bars and clubs with liquor are what come into our minds when we talk about "commercial establishments" that are open up to the wee hours in the morning. Here's what Duterte said during the media interview: Gusto niyo akong maging presidente? Pag ako nag-presidente, ala-una sarado na 'to. Uwi na kayo. Ginagawa ko sa Davao. Bakit hindi ko gagawin dito (You want me to be President. If I become President, everything's closed at 1am. I did it in Davao. Why won't I do it everywhere else)? When put into effect, among those which will be affected by the 1 am curfew will be casinos, bars, clubs, disco pubs, videoke lounges, etc. According to GMA News Online , "The discussion on curfews came abo...

There's good news to all Rodrigo Duterte fans out there! The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has just announced that he can go on as a replacement for party-mate Martin Diño. The bad news? Let's talk about the good news first. National poll body Comelec on Friday December 4, has junked a petition to declare anti-crime advocate Martin Diño a nuisance candidate. This means tough guy Duterte can go on as a replacement candidate for Diño. The Comelec Second Division said the petition is “moot and academic” as Diño had already withdrawn his candidacy effective October 29, thereby losing “justiciability” because it no longer presents a real problem as between the parties involved. Comelec said, With the foregoing development, the relief prayed for in the present petition has become moot and academic, that is, whatever judgment is reached can no longer have any practical legal effect or, in the nature of things, can no longer be enforced. Now, for the bad news. Th...

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before—but 130 people just might run for president. The last several weeks have witnessed speculation on mainstream media and on social networks about who Philippines' next President will be or should be. There have been half a dozen names floating around -- some calculated guesses, some pure media speculation and some self-proclaiming their candidature. But during the closing of the filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COC's) more than a hundred individuals - compared to just 99 during the 2010 elections - have announced they are running for the 2016 presidential elections. Candidates for president, vice president and senator filed their COCs from Oct. 12 to 16 at the Comelec main office in Manila; and aside from the 130 presidential aspirants there were 19 candidates for vice president and 172 for senator. However, not all 130 may be declared as official candidates for President, the Comelec said. “We gave the people the chance to ...

Is Bongbong aiming for a return to the Malacanang Palace? Nearly 30 years after the People Power Revolution which ousted his father from Malacanang, Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., the son and namesake of the late dictator, on Friday launched his bid for the vice presidency in the May, 2016, elections. If he wins, the younger Marcos may well be one step closer to Malacanang Palace, which he considered his home for more than 20 years during the term of his father, the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos. His father's presidency was marred with corruption and the most cruel human rights violations. Bongbong's key to economic development Marcos, 58, declared his VP candidacy at the Puerto Real Garden in Intramuros, Manila, where his hands were raised by his 86-year-old mother, Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda R. Marcos; former President and now Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada; and Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile. In a news article from Inquirer.net , Marcos...

How would a DNA test prove one's citizenship? Presidential hopeful Grace Poe two weeks ago underwent a DNA testing for two reasons: first, to prove that she's a natural born citizen of the Philippines; and second, to resolve a disqualification case slapped against her at the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET). Senator Poe's camp earlier said if the DNA test showed she's born to Filipino parents than it will be a conclusive evidence that she's a natural born citizen and not "naturalized" as claimed by her critics. Her lawyer, Atty. George Garcia, said in a TV interview of a Supreme Court decision that "DNA tests are conclusive insofar as the courts are concerned. In fact it is already part of the rules of evidence," Garcia is talking about a decision penned by Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice and Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) Chairman Antonio Carpio. Carpio earlier said that Poe, as a foundling, is considered a naturalized Filipin...

So there we have it, the announcement of Senator Grace Poe's presidential candidacy for the upcoming 2016 elections completed the triangle of prexy hopefuls between her, Vice President Jojo Binay and former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas. The political scenario indeed heated up the headlines until Facebook user Keith Bacongco shared this photo - snapped from Barangay Paco, Kidapawan City in North Cotabato - and literally doused the blazing temperature... the photograph encouraging quite a number of laughs from netizens. The FB post was captioned: "When you're at the right place at the right time. ‪#‎photography‬ ‪#‎northcotabato‬ ‪#‎mindanao‬ ‪#‎politics‬ ‪#‎ishootwithcanon‬ ‪#‎luck‬ http://ift.tt/1ikRCs4. - at Brgy Paco Kidapawan City." WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

Senator Grace Poe, on Wednesday, finally declared her intention to run for president in the forthcoming May 2016 elections inside the jampacked University of the Philippines Bahay ng Alumni. Her speech focused on most major problems of the country which she intends to address if and when she wins the presidency. Please find below the FULL TEXT of her speech September 16, 2015: "Sa aking ina, sa aking asawa at mga anak, mga kaibigan, sa lahat ng naririto ngayon maraming salamat po sa pagdalo ninyo ngayong araw. Mga Kababayan Nung una akong kumatok sa inyong mga puso, ang sabi ko: Gusto kong ipagpatuloy ang mga simulain ni FPJ. Simple lang ang prinsipyo ng aking ama na siya ring naging dahilan ng kanyang pagtakbo... sinabi niya mismo sa bulwagang ito mahigit 11-taon ang nakalipas: Importante sa isang leader ang katalinuhan pero mas mahalaga ang may tapat na pusong manilbihan upang tulungan ang mahihirap, labanan ang pang-aabuso, at pumanday ng isang lipunang masagana ...