US Senator Edward Markey has a message to President Rodrigo Duterte after he was banned from visiting the Philippines after expressing support to Senator Leila De Lima and also to Rappler CEO Maria Ressa.

In a statement, Markey said that the actions of Duterte cannot silence him and he would still express his support to the detained lady senator.

“President Duterte is sorely mistaken if he thinks he can silence my voice and that of my colleagues,” said Markey who’s the third American Senator barred by the Duterte admin from visiting the Philippines.

According to Markey, President Duterte already failed to silence his top critics in the country that’s why he’s confident that the move of the Philippine government to hush him is not going to happen.

The American Senator also said that he’s going to support the people of the Philippines and also the Filipino-American community who are criticizing the policies of the Duterte administration.

“He has already failed to silence Senator De Lima, Maria Ressa, and others in his country who have spoken truth to power. I stand with the people of the Philippines and with my state’s vibrant Filipino-American community fighting for the highest democratic ideals and against the strongman tactics of the Duterte government,” he said.

The Palace announced that Markey is not allowed to visit the Philippines after he called for the release of Senator De Lima.

“Yes [the ban is extended] to Markey,” Panelo said.

Senators Markey, Richard Durbin, and Patrick Leahy are the American politicians barred from visiting the Philippines for sponsoring the US Senate resolution that called for the release of Senator De Lima who has been in detention since February 2017.

Other sponsors of the said resolution are Marco Rubio, Marsha Blackburn, Chris Coons, Jeff Merkley, Tina Smith, Brian Schatz, Dianne Feinstein, and Benjamin Cardin, but the Palace didn’t mention if they’re also included in the entry-ban.

The Duterte government started to disallow De Lima’s American politician supporters from visiting the country after it was reported that US President Donald Trump signed his country’s 2020 budget which includes the entry-ban of government officials who were involved in the detention of the lady senator.

Veteran journalist Jay Sonza has a message to Laguna Representative Sol Aragones who urged President Rodrigo Duterte to “reconsider” his decision over the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN.

On a Facebook post, Sonza questioned the former ABS-CBN reporter if she’s really concern about the welfare of the employees of the television network giant.

Instead of asking the President to change his heart, Sonza said that Aragones should ask her former bosses to settle the labor cases filed by ABS-CBN employees against their company and put them back to their jobs.

“Laguna Rep. Sol Aragones, Kung totoong concern ka sa mga empleyado ng ABS CBN, ganito ang gawin mo, sabihan mo ang mga dating Amo mong ganid na ayusin nila iyong 20 labor cases na isinampa ng mga uring manggagawa laban sa kumpanya at bigyan ang mga kawani ng karampatang hustisya. Bayaran at ibalik Silang lahat sa trabaho,” Sonza said.

The veteran journalist also asked Aragones why the latter spoke about the welfare of employees of ABS-CBN only during the time when they’re already pushing for the franchise renewal of the television network.

“Huwag kang hipokrita. Bakit noong pinagtatanggal ang daan-daang empleyado ay Hindi ka nanindigan para Kanila? Tapos sasabihin mo ngayon kawawa iyong mawawalan ng trabaho kapag nagsara ang network operations ng kumpanya,” he said.

Aragones is included to the 11 members of the House of Representatives who are pushing for the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN.

“I appeal to the President to reconsider his position on the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise, as its non-renewal or its sale to third parties may threaten the livelihoods of over 11,000 employees––many of whom I worked with during my stint as a reporter in the network,” said Aragones.

Nine legislative measures were filed as an effort to renew the franchise of the television network.

However, the fate of ABS-CBN is still uncertain because of President Duterte’s criticism against the television network.

The President repeated many times that he opposed the franchise renewal of the said television network and even suggested to the owners of ABS-CBN to just sell their network to other businessmen.

Laguna’s 3rd District Representative Sol Aragones made an appeal to President Rodrigo Duterte to change his heart over the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN for the sake of thousands of employees could possibly lose their job if ever that the television network giant closes.

In a statement, Aragones who worked as a Kapamilya broadcaster from 1998 to 2012 said that the latest suggestion of President Rodrigo Duterte to the owners of ABS-CBN to sell the company to other businessmen could still affect the livelihood of 11,000 employees of the said network.

“I appeal to the President to reconsider his position on the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise, as its non-renewal or its sale to third parties may threaten the livelihoods of over 11,000 employees––many of whom I worked with during my stint as a reporter in the network,” said Aragones.

Aragones is hopeful that President Duterte could still change his mind as she witnessed how the chief executive care for his people.

“The President has consistently displayed tapang and malasakit during his tenure in Malacañang, and I appreciate and respect how these have translated to policy pronouncements,” she said.

“As chairman of the House Committee on Tourism, I have personally seen firsthand how presidential directives with regard to Boracay and Manila Bay have resulted in the successful rehabilitation of these two tourist spots and the strict implementation of environmental laws that will preserve these sites for generations to come,” she added.

Meanwhile, Palawan Rep. Franz Alvarez said that they’re going to investigate the complaints against ABS-CBN so they could find out if the television network is deserved for franchise renewal.

“Does the President and many others who have made statements against ABS-CBN’s election coverage and election ad placement system, have a legitimate grievance against ABS-CBN? Did ABS-CBN violate the provisions of its franchise?” Alvarez stressed.

“Can ABS-CBN credibly defend its privilege of being granted a renewal of its franchise? These are just some of the questions that our committee will seek to answer when we conduct hearings on the matter once Congress resumes session three weeks from now,” he added.

ABS-CBN is the biggest network in the Philippines and its franchise is set to expire in March this year.

President Duterte until now is still opposing the franchise renewal because of past issues.

Former Senator Bam Aquino bids farewell to one of the most challenging years in his career.

On his Instagram post, Aquino posted a photo of his family with a caption about the failures he experienced last year.

It can be remembered that Aquino failed to get enough votes to get re-elected as Senator, placed 14th last senatorial elections with 14,144,923 votes.

However, the former Senator said that he “didn’t break” because of his “faith”.

“Goodbye 2019. More downs than ups this year. Heartache and disappointment as well. But how can I complain? I was brought to the breaking point, but I didn’t break. My Faith was tested, but I found out it’s real, and it’s strong. How can I complain?” said Aquino.

Aquino also mentioned that despite being defeated in politics last year, his family is still there and he’s still full of hope this 2020.

“Buo ang aking pamilya and my heart is full of hope. So 2020, come fast, come quick and be better than the last. May this New Year be filled with faith, with love, with hope and belief, that through it all, we are in the palm of His hands!” he added.

Some netizens even noticed that Aquino changed his looks a little bit, from being clean-shaven, the former Senator is now having beard and mustache.

 

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Goodbye 2019. More downs than ups this year. Heartache and disappointment as well. But how can I complain? I was brought to the breaking point, but I didn’t break. My Faith was tested, but I found out it’s real, and it’s strong. How can I complain? Buo ang aking pamilya and my heart is full of hope. So 2020, come fast, come quick and be better than the last. May this New Year be filled with faith, with love, with hope and belief, that through it all, we are in the palm of His hands!

A post shared by @ bamaquino on Dec 30, 2019 at 7:56pm PST

Even blogger RJ “Thinking Pinoy” Nieto who called Bam as a cosplayer of his uncle former Sen. Ninoy Aquino couldn’t stop himself from praising the looks of the politician.

“He actually looks better after he stopped cosplaying Ninoy,” said Nieto.

The future political plans of Aquino is not yet known yet as it seems that he’s still spending his free time with his family.

Senator Leila De Lima criticized the Duterte administration on December 30 over the “rain twisting and propaganda” after the US allegedly banned the entry of government officials involved in her detention.

On a series of tweets, De Lima said that the administration kept spreading lies even during the holiday season just insist that she was being given due process.

The lady senator argued that she was not given a fair trial and accused the witnesses of giving a scripted statement against her.

“Huwag ako. Paskong-pasko sinungaling pa rin kayo. Magbabagong taon, baka gusto n’yong magbagong buhay din? It is axiomatic in the law that the process should be fair and just. Saan ang fair and just sa ginawa n’yo sa akin?” said De Lima.

“Para n’yo nang sinabi na makatarungan din ang pagpako kay Hesus dahil may proseso naman. Dumaan naman kay Poncio Pilato. Huwag n’yong kalimutan na naghugas kamay si Poncio Pilato, gaya ninyo. At ng mga testigo niyong rehearsed at scripted,” she added.

Para n'yo nang sinabi na makatarungan din ang pagpako kay Hesus dahil may proseso naman. Dumaan naman kay Poncio Pilato. Huwag n'yong kalimutan na naghugas kamay si Poncio Pilato, gaya ninyo. At ng mga testigo niyong rehearsed at scripted.

— Leila de Lima (@SenLeiladeLima) December 30, 2019

She also warned the people behind her detention that they cannot defeat the “divine justice”.

“Umupa pa yata kayo ng acting coach. Sa loob ng korte sintunado mga testigo n’yo. Baka gusto n’yong kumuha na rin ng voice coach? You can never silence or defeat the truth! Divine justice is mightier than all of you combined,” she said.

Umupa pa yata kayo ng acting coach. Sa loob ng korte sintunado mga testigo n'yo. Baka gusto n'yong kumuha na rin ng voice coach?

You can never silence or defeat the truth! Divine justice is mightier than all of you combined.

— Leila de Lima (@SenLeiladeLima) December 30, 2019

A few days ago, two American senators claimed that US President Donald Trump signed the 2020 budget which includes the entry ban against De Lima’s accusers.

As a response, the Duterte administration banned two American Senators, Richard Durbin and Patrick Leahy from entering the Philippine territory.

They’re also planning to require all Americans of getting a visa before visiting the Philippines.

American Senator Richard Durbin urged the Duterte administration to free Senator Leila De Lima instead of implementing new visa rules for US citizens who wanted to enter the Philippine territory.

In a statement, Durbin who’s a Senator from Illinois mentioned that there are many Filipino-Americans are working in his place and making them required to get a visa before visiting the Philippines could affect them.

Like Senator Patrick Leahy, Durbin also suggested to the Philippine government to just free Senator Leila De Lima instead of putting new visa rules for Americans.

Durbin also described De Lima’s charges as “highly questionable”.

“Illinois is proudly home to a vibrant, hardworking Filipino community. The Duterte regime should stop threatening the travel of these Filipino Americans and so many others who travel between our nations, and instead release Senator de Lima or assure a quick and credible trial,” Durbin said.

“This strong-arm tactic is an insult to the Filipino American community and country’s democracy,” he added.

Read my statement on the continued detention of Philippine Senator Leila de Lima by the government of the Philippines and President Rodrigo Duterte: pic.twitter.com/e4nsS8rvuy

— Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) December 30, 2019

On December 27, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Bureau of Immigration to deny Senator Durbin and Leahy from entering the Philippine territory for pushing for the entry-ban against government officials who were involved in the detention of De Lima.

The Duterte admin also said that if the US enforced the entry ban, they’re going to require all Americans to get a visa before being allowed to travel to the Philippines.

“Should a ban from entry into US territory be enforced against Philippine officials involved in – or by reason of – Senator de Lima’s lawful detention, this government will require all Americans intending to come to the Philippines to apply and secure a visa before they can enter Philippine territory,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.

President Rodrigo Duterte renewed his warning to ABS-CBN telling the television network giant to sell their company because he’s not sure if their franchise is still going to get renewed.

In a speech before quake victims in M’lang, North Cotabato, Duterte said that the people have the chance now to take revenge against ABS-CBN.

The television network’s franchise is set to expire in March 2020 and until now, the Congress is not yet discussing the renewal of ABS-CBN.

“Itong ABS (CBN), mag-expire ang contract ninyo. Mag-renew kayo, ewan ko lang kung may mangyari diyan. Kung ako sa inyo ipagbili niyo na ‘yan,” Duterte said in a speech before quake victims in M’lang, North Cotabato.

“Kasi ang mga Pilipino ngayon lang makaganti sa inyong kalokohan. And I will make sure that you will remember this episode of our times forever,” he added.

The statement of the President was followed by applause from the audience.

Duterte made his statement after the Congress failed to tackle ABS-CBN franchise renewal in 2019.

If ABS-CBN failed to get franchise renewal, they’re required to stop their broadcast network which being feared by its employees.

Some celebrities and supporters of ABS-CBN even appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to change his heart and let the franchise renewal of the said network proceed.

However, despite the appeals he received, President Duterte remained firm in his decision not to renew to franchise of ABS-CBN.

“Ang inyong franchise mag-end next year. If you are expecting na ma-renew ‘yan , I’m sorry. You’re out. I will see to it that you’re out,”he said in a speech delivered in Malacañang last December 3.

One of the reasons why President Duterte doesn’t want ABS-CBN to continue its operation is because of not airing his political campaign in 2016.