EMONG'S JOURNALS

(Screenshot from the Angkas website) Buckle up, bike riders – we have 10 new rules! The government's inter-agency technical working group (TWG) is announcing major changes in the motorcycle taxis' short but impactful pilot run. This came after a public outcry over the decision of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to enforce a limit on the number of riders of Transport Networking Companies (TNC) in Metro Manila. Earlier, the LTFRB has allowed entry to two more bike-taxi firms: JoyRide and Move It apps. Here's the 10 new features of the Motorcycle Taxi Guidelines. The TWG or a designated information technology expert will have access to each provider’s database for validation and verification. All riders will have to register with the LTFRB to form a database of participating riders. The providers will submit a list of riders registered in their platform. The providers must also submit data on any modifications or update...

This is a revenge fantasy every Grab driver has had, and a haunting nightmare to the common Grab passenger. Being a Grab passenger is a lot of things. It's about self-rule. It's about freedom and liberation from the conventionally rude taxi drivers who swindles you at the smallest opportunity. You say that "the customer is always right," but if you're someone like me, you'd say it's always been a two-way street. A transport network vehicle service (TNVS) should be a good experience not only for riders, but for drivers as well. So if you're inclined to give a low rating to a Grab driver you think didn't do well in his job, he might also be thinking of rating you back. Probably lower when you cancel on your bookings. If you have a low passenger rating due to frequent cancellations of bookings, it might be harder for you to get picked up in the future. If Grab only had a 'fine-for-cancellation' policy against riders, you'd be spendi...

For the lady senator, it's not all about eye bags and bad hair days. September 15, 2016. During the Senate Justice committee hearing led by Senator Leila De Lima, Edgar Matobato, a self-confessed assassin in Davao City, testified that then-Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte ordered a series of summary executions including one which involved an extraordinary flair - feeding a body to a crocodile. Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte's running mate during the presidential elections, was quick to cross examine Matobato and noticed several inconsistencies in his story. Because of these inconsistencies, Senator Panfilo Lacson invoked the legal principle of falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus (false in one, false in everything). September 19, 2016. Senator Cayetano delivered his privilege speech, criticizing De Lima for lack of objectivity in the Senate justice committee's probe. She later walked-out of the hall, just minutes before Cayetano ended his speech. Cayetano...

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...

No one expected the kill list to hit a thousand so darn fast! More than 1000 suspected drug users or dealers have been killed by police or vigilantes in the Philippines in less than three months, according to a news report from ABS CBN News. A separate tally from GMA News is fewer, and said that since 10 May – the day Rodrigo Duterte was announced the winner of the presidential poll – at least 601 people have been killed because they were suspected to have been involved with drugs. The deadliest day fell on August 11 where a total of 27 drug men were killed. The killings appear to have been carried out by police, who attribute the violence to suspects who “resisted arrest and shot at police officers”, and vigilante groups emboldened by Duterte’s promises of impunity. During the campaign, Duterte said 100,000 people would die in his crackdown, with so many dead bodies dumped in Manila Bay that fish there would grow fat from feeding on them. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS PO...

The next dude (or babe!) you'll be dancing with tonight might be a covert cop. The Philippine National Police (PNP) is now eyeing high-end bars in Taguig and Makati cities in an attempt to combat the proliferation of party drugs, according to a report from the Manila Bulletin . Police Senior Supt. Tomas Apolinario, head of the Southern Police District, explained: We are conducting patrol on big bars and club. We have already coordinated with bar and club (owners) and they are now giving special security passes for our personnel. They are there to observe and even use the comfort rooms because as we all know, it is in the comfort rooms where the party drugs are being passed." The focus on high-end bars and clubs, which are usually the favorite hangout spots of rich kids and celebrities, was brought about by the death of five concertgoers in a Pasay City concert due to party drugs, he added. Police operatives will also scour posh subdivisions in Makati, Taguig, Parañaq...

The son of basketball superstar and former senator Robert Jaworski was hurt after an encounter with police authorities in Makati City early Saturday. According to a report from Inquirer.net , Senior Supt. Ernesto Barlam, Makati chief of police, confirmed that Ryan Joseph Jaworski, 40, of Quezon City, is currently confined at Makati Medical Center (as of this post) after sustaining injuries reportedly in the leg. Initial reports disclosed that prior to the incident, Jaworski and his two friends Joselito Au of Cainta, Rizal, and Ferdinand Parago were on board a maroon Nissan Sentra, with plate number WNE-425, when they reportedly noticed vehicles trailing them and fired at them at the corner of Chino Roces and Pasay Road. The vehicles, being driven by police operatives, fired back; but Jaworski and his companions were able to escape. Follow-up operations conducted by the police led them to the Makati Medical Center where Jaworski was having himself treated for a gunsho...

THE Land Transportation Office (LTO) revealed the design of the new driver’s license cards set to be released this August. LTO chief Alfonso Tan Jr. said there are a few changes but "...it’s essentially the same." In a news article from The Star , Tan said they retained “almost everything” on the new driver’s license cards, and just added the words ”driver’s license,” amid complaints from Filipinos abroad that their licenses are not honored overseas. Resolution has been enhanced and the cards will be printed in 600dpi. The fonts of name of the driver and his/her address will be enlarged for better readability. The "Philippines" and "millennium" tags printed at the top and bottom of the flag are removed while "height," "weight," and "agency" are spelled out. Though sporting a new look, the non-professional and professional driver’s license cards will still be colored blue. The student’s permit, which used to...

THE government has stepped up the effort to raise awareness to prepare for the Big One, or the East and West Valley Fault earthquake, by literally marking the ground where it traverses. Led by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) officials, roads in Taguig City were painted with markers with the use of white reflectorized thermoplastic paint, which is also being used in Metro Manila’s pedestrian lanes. MMDA chairman Francis Tolentino said that these markers will let the public know where the fault actually lies and that these "may serve as a daily reminder to the residents that they are residing near or along the fault and at the same time heighten their awareness to prepare for the unexpected.” Tolentino added that they intend to paint the markers, which can last up to five years, over the whole 100-km WVF from San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan up to Cavite and Laguna. The Phivolcs has w...

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...

MOTORISTS can now use their brand new cars even without its license plates. This after the Land Transportation Office (LTO) announced that it will no longer implement its controversial "No Plate, No Travel" policy due to the shortage of license plates and stickers. Instead, the LTO will now put into effect the "No Registration, No Travel" system under Memorandum Circular No. AVT-2015-1930 enforcing a policy on the “no registration, no travel” of four-wheeled motor vehicles pursuant to Joint Administrative Order No. 2014-01. According to a Rappler article, under the memorandum circular, the owner of the unregistered vehicle will be fined P10,000.00. The driver of the same vehicle will be charged a separate P1,000.00. If a motor vehicle has been unregistered for more than 37 days, it will be impounded and released only upon registration and payment of appropriate fines and penalties. Senate hearing At a Senate hearing last Friday, Senator JV Ejercit...

THE Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on Monday released the Valley Fault System (VFS) Atlas, a handbook of large-scale maps showing in detail areas traversed by the Valley Fault System, otherwise known as the East and West Valley Quake Faults. News headlines, radio and television announcements are already in place to let the people living in the VFS make the necessary precautions if and when this great earthquake should occur. Houses should be at least five meters away from the fault lines and should be able to withstand a strong earthquake, the agency added. But what really is the VFS? 1. The VFS is an active fault system in the Greater Metro Manila Area composed of two fault segments: the East Valley Fault (EVF) and the West Valley Fault (WVF). 2. The EVF, which covers several barangays in Rodriguez and San Mateo, Rizal, measures ten kilometers long while the WVF, which runs within Bulacan, Rizal, Metro Manila, Cavite and Laguna has a lengt...

H ere's another case of a Filipina caught smuggling large amounts of suspected drugs in a foreign country. A 29 year old tourist, whose identity is temporarily withheld, came from Manila and was arrested by Hong Kong customs officers when they found 1.8 kilograms of cocaine in her suitcase. The seized illegal drug has a street value of HK$1.7 million (roughly PHP 9.7 million). Vice Consul Charles Macaspac said the Filipino woman had already been extended consular services. Heavy briefcase According to news website The Sun-HK , the Filipina tourist arrived from Manila on February 2. But upon baggage examination, Customs officers found an "abnormally heavy" briefcase inside her hand-carried suitcase. When inspected, the briefcase contained false compartments that yielded 1.8 kilos of suspected cocaine. She was charged with one count of trafficking of a dangerous drug, the report said. Last December, another Filipina identified as Monica Eden was arrested ...

A fun vacation of young professionals was suddenly put to a halt when one of their friends went missing after his jet ski malfunctioned at Anilao Sea, Batangas friday afternoon. Timothy Roy Condino, 22, his brother Stephene Roy Condino, cousin Dante Cardines and friends Roel Santos and Jeff Nodalo Capuz were on board two jet skis going to Sombrero island when Timothy's jet ski conked out at around 3:30 p.m. Condino said Cardines, Santos and Capuz then decided to go back to their resthouse on board one jet ski, leaving Timothy alone in the sea, to get a rope to haul Timothy's jet ski. However, when they returned to the area where they left Timothy, he was nowhere to be found. They immediately reported the incident to the local police and the Philippine Coast Guard, which subsequently conducted a search and rescue operation until Friday evening, but failed to find Timothy. On Saturday morning, authorities conducted an aerial rescue search and said they sighted a je...