Senator Leila De Lima warned Manila City Mayor Isko Moreno to avoid presenting suspected lawbreakers in the media because it’s against the human rights.

In a statement, De Lima said that she appreciated the efforts of the Manila City Mayor in cleaning up his city against lawbreakers, however, she reminded Moreno that suspects still have their constitutional right to presumption of innocence.

According to her, despite the fact that Moreno allowed suspects to hide their faces, some media personalities and people who are present in every press conference held by the City Government of Manila could still possibly see and identify them.

“Kahanga-hanga ang ginagawang mga hakbang ni Mayor Isko sa paglinis ng Maynila, kasama na ang pagsugpo ng krimidalidad. Pinapaalala lang natin sa kanya na ang pagparada ng suspect ay labag sa batas sa karapatang pantao,” she said.

“Nakita po natin ang pagsisikap ni Mayor Isko na patalikurin ang mga nasabing suspek at maitago ang kanilang mukha. Gayumpaman, naiharap pa rin sila sa mga kawani ng media at mga taong naroon,” she added.

However, De Lima praised Moreno for not following the “tokhang-style” which became popular when President Rodrigo Duterte became the chief executive.

De Lima released the said statement after Moreno presented 35 suspects caught in different operations by the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The Senator who’s also a critic of the Duterte administration is known for promoting human rights, she’s also the former chairperson of Commission on Human Rights (CHR).

During her term as CHR chair, De Lima urged the PNP to stop presenting the suspects in public.

Meanwhile, the Manila City Legal Office defended Moreno’s action, mentioning that the PNP Reorganization Act of 1998 and DILG Reorganization Act of 1990 where the mayors have “operational supervision and control” of PNP units in their areas.

One of the parents who attended the hearing regarding missing minors who are alleged recruited by leftists groups became emotional while narrating how her child became so different after she participated in activism.

During the hearing on Wednesday, Relissa Lucena said that she received the letter from the leftist group where her missing daughter joined.

“Maaring mga magulang nga kayo pero tandaan niyo na dumaan lang siya sa inyo at hindi niyo siya pag-aari. Pwede niyo silang palakihin at mahalin dahil responsibilidad niyo iyon pero hindi pwedeng hulmahin at pilitin maging tulad niyo. Kung hindi niyo siya makilala ngayon, ikaw misis, siguradong hindi niya rin nakilala pa,” Lucena said while reading the comments emotionally.

“Wala kang pinagkaiba sa militar at nag paggamit ka sa kanila. Tama ang sinabi ni Rizal na, “Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan”, kasi paano ang mga matatandang hukluban na katulad niyo ang pag-asa kung nagpapagamit kayo sa militar na walang ginawa kundi ang pumatay at sambahin si Duterte,” she added.

Another member from the leftist group also made a comment against another parent of the missing student Luisa Espina, telling them that they don’t own their child anymore.

“Ang inyong mga anak ay hindi niyo na mga anak, sila ang mga anak na lalaki at babae na magnanais ng buhay sa sarili. Dumaan sila sayo pero hindi mula sayo, at kahit na kasama ka pa nila ay kabilang sila hindi sa iyo bagkus kasama sila sa isang lipunan,” Lucena reads.

After reading the letter, Lucena started crying saying that she couldn’t understand why the leftist groups are not thinking of the suffering of the parents who worked hard just to give a better life for their children.

“Kami yung nagpalaki, kami nag aruga tapos ginamit yung anak namin sa politika,”

Lucena is only one of the four parents who attended the hearing to recount how the leftist groups like Anakbayan, League of Filipino Students and Kabataan took their children away.

The spokesperson of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Celine Pialago filed a formal complaint against ABS-CBN reporter Doris Bigornia for showing a rude behavior towards her.

According to the complaint of Pialago which sent to ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs Division Head Ging Reyes, the senior reporter was struck unintentionally by the MMDA spokesperson during a fire drill in Makati City hall.

Despite the apology of Pialago, Bigornia started to show rude behavior and even hurt her during the confrontation.

There’s also an incident where Bigornia told her cameraman to avoid capturing Pialago in the video that they’re recording.

“si (MMDA) GM (Jojo Garcia) lang kukunan mo sa frame, ‘wag mong isama ‘yang katabi niya!” Bigornia said according to Pialago.

The MMDA spokesperson also claimed that Bigornia tried to destroy her image to other people.

A report from PEP.ph also said that the General Manager of MMDA Jojo Garcia tried to fix the relationship between Bigornia and Pialago, however, the reporter refused to say that she would not talk to an “unethical person”.

The recent behavior of Bigornia made her file a formal complaint to Ging Reyes, who vowed to investigate their reporter.

“If Miss Bigornia had any delicadeza, or actually, any sense of decency at all, she would not spread rumors inside our own office,” Pialago said.

This is not the first time that Doris Bigornia got investigated by her own network because of rude behavior.

In 2016, Bigornia faced a complaint from a reporter of GMA in Davao City during the campaign period for the presidential election.

“Our DMNG Engineer Al Lim Ramz politely told you to excuse yourself from our camera since you became an eyesore to my live report. Mr. Bong Go and I were on cam, but you immediately scolded him and even told him “sapakin kita”. Seniel wrote in his open letter in 2016.

“I don’t care who you are, yes you are Doris Bigornia of ABS CBN, nauna kayo sa amin sa media, hindi pa ako nakarating sa trabaho na ito, napapanood na kita sa TV.” he added.

The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) vowed to file administrative cases against their professors who are requiring their students to join rallies against the government.

During the sidelines of the Senate hearing on missing minors who allegedly recruited by organizations linked with the communist movement on Wednesday, PUP president Emanuel de Guzman said that they’re ready to punish their educators if they are proven encouraging students to join demonstrations.

“If proven, administrative cases will be filed against them. They will no longer be qualified to teach in PUP,” de Guzman said.

The President of PUP said that he would support the government in stopping the recruitments of the leftist groups like KABATAAN and ANAKBAYAN that caused the students to leave their homes in an early age to join the communist movement.

De Guzman also apologized to the parents of the missing students, saying that he’s not aware of that the communists operate in their university.

“Ako po ay nag-a-apologize sa kanila dahil ‘yung mga anak nila na nasa PUP ay na-recruit kahit na ito ay labag sa aming kalooban. But we cannot commit that 100 percent, this would not happen. We are hoping this will not happen again,” he said.

“Ang PUP, kahit noon pang panahon ng martial law ay lugar na ng mga aktibista, pero maliit na minorya lamang sila sa aming malaking populasyon. Unti-unti nang lumiliit ang bilang dahil naglagay na kami ng reporma,” he added.

Senator Ronald Dela Rosa also said that he got a complaint that a professor in the University of the Philippines Cebu is requiring his students to attend rallies against the government in exchange of passing grades.

“Teachers leading their students astray, communists allowed to recruit inside the school grounds, we should not tolerate that,” the senator said.

The said hearing was attended by the mothers of the missing children who were senior high school students in PUP, Far Eastern University and the University of the East Manila.

According to them, their children were recruited to join Anakbayan, Kabataan, and League of Filipino Students.

Mayor Isko Moreno expressed utter disappointment after he caught a member of the Manila Traffic And Parking Bureau (MTPB) allegedly having a settlement with a bus driver Tuesday.

Moreno who’s walking along Liwasang Bonifacio caught the MTPB officer allegedly talking with the traffic violator inside the bus which is not the proper process of ticketing.

The Mayor believed that the MTPB officer had a settlement with the driver as the bus allowed to escape the area immediately.

Because of his anger, Moreno fired the traffic enforcer on the spot and asked his staff to confiscate the ID and the ticket of the latter.

“O pahinga ka na… ayaw niyong magtino ha,” Moreno told the traffic enforcer.

According to Moreno, the place where he saw the traffic enforcer is a known illegal terminal and the said bus driver is driving without any license.

After catching the bus, Moreno ordered his staff to impound the vehicle.

Moreno also confronted the bus driver and the conductor giving them a firm warning about what they did.

However, the Mayor let the bus conductor go home, while the bus driver was told the Moreno to go to the City Hall to get his license.

“Sumunod kayo sa alituntunin at makakapag hanap buhay kayo ng maayos,” Moreno said.

Mayor Isko Moreno said that he’s planning to stay in Manila City for ten years because he wanted to complete the long term plan for the Manilenyos.

In an interview at the Senate Building, Moreno said that he’s not planning to run for a higher position in the 2022 Presidential Election, asking the people to have mercy on him.

Because of his popularity, Moreno has been eyed by some netizens as one of the strongest candidates for the Presidency in 2022.

However, the Mayor said that he would focus on Manila first in three consecutive terms to fulfill his long term plan.

“May awa ang Diyos, in the next 10 years… our goal is 10 years not three years ha, yung mga nag po-post sa Facebook na three years ay may mangyayari na sa akin… maawa kayo sa akin, h’wag niyo akong ipakain sa buwaya,” Moreno told the press.

“One way or another, I owe it to Manila and I think masyado na kaming napag iiwanan. I’m just starting kaya h’wag po kayong mag iisip ng kahit ano pa man about what’s going on in Manila is because there is something going to happen in 2022… No please, tigilan niyo na yun,” he added.

Moreno when asked the media also said that he’s not yet satisfied with what he did in Manila because he’s only managing the City for 1 month and 7 days, still too far from his goal of 10 years of being the Mayor.

“Malayo pa sa katotohanan, nagsisimula palang kami,” he said.

In another interview, Moreno said that his 10-year plan was focused on tourism, traffic, and health.

“Hindi ‘yan ikinaila sa mga taga-Maynila… pinaliwanag ko sa tao, ‘Wag ho kayong maiinip ha. Sampung taon ho ito mangyayari,’” Moreno said.

Mayor Isko Moreno almost flicked the ear of a foreign national he caught smoking in a public place during his days roaming around Malate, Manila City.

Despite knowing that the Mayor is coming together with a bunch of his staff and members of the media, the foreign national continues to smoke in front of Moreno who’s known for his strict governance.

“No Smoking, this is a public place,” Moreno said.

The foreign national ignored the Mayor and tried to walk away while still holding his cigarette. However, one of Moreno’s staff stopped the smoker from running away.

When the foreign national threw his cigarette in the wrong place, the Mayor demanded the former to pick it up.

“Pick it up and throw it there,” Moreno told the foreign national while pointing in the garbage bin.

Meanwhile, the second foreign national who caught by Moreno smoking denied that he’s holding a cigarette and seemed frightened by the presence of the Mayor.

Moreno also warned the establishments along Malate to follow the no-smoking law.

“Akala kasi nila ‘pag ganitong oras walang gobyerno,” Moreno said.

On May 18, 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte signed the no-smoking ban in the whole country to follow what he did in Davao City when he was still a Mayor.

According to the order, people are prohibited to smoke in the following places:

• Government buildings
• Schools, colleges and universities
• Offices and other workplaces
• Restaurants and other food and drink establishments
• Hotels and other accommodation facilities
• Hospitals, health centers, clinics, and nursing homes
• Transportation terminals
• Churches
• Shopping centers, retail stores, and other merchandise establishments
• Entertainment establishments
• Sports venues
• Other establishments that provide professional services

When caught for the first time, the violator needs to pay ₱500 – ₱1,000 for the first offense.

It’s not yet known what happens to the two foreign nationals caught by Moreno.

Mayor Isko Moreno made another midnight roaming around Manila City on Monday, and as he started his live Facebook video, he quickly saw two children using a solvent along Quirino-Taft Avenue.

Moreno quickly told his staff to call the nearest police station to rescue the children and expressed his disappointment on the neglectful parents.

According to him, the Manila City Government under his leadership already rescued 365 children that made the Boystown crowded.

“Nalulungkot lang ho ako, dahil itong mga magulang hindi ko malaman kung ito ba’y sinasadya nilang iwan yung mga anak nila,” Moreno said during his live video.

“Matapos nilang paghirapan ng siyam na buwan sa sinapupunan nila yung kanilang mga anak ay para bang napagod na sila at sinoga nalang nila yung mga anak nila sa kalye,” he added.

He made a warning to the parents who neglected their children and letting them roam around the streets to use solvents.

Moreno pointed out that there’s a law that could penalize neglectful parents, but they’re still giving them a chance to correct their mistakes.

Republic Act 7610 cited that parents are responsible for taking care of and providing for their children’s needs.  No child should be on the streets, exposed to danger at a young age.

“Sana ay kunin ninyo na ang mga anak ninyo, pangalagaan ninyo… responsibilidad niyo po yan.” Moreno said.

“Alam niyo sa totoo lang pagka hindi po tayo tumigil kayong mga magulang diyan sa bandang huli ay kayo ang kakasuhan namin,” he added.

The Manila City Mayor said that he’s receiving many complaints from the netizens about the solvent boys, so he’s trying to solve the said problem.

“Alam kong mahirap ang buhay pero wag sanang maging dahilan sa atin na dala ng kahirapan ng buhay na itatapon natin sa kalye yung mga anak natin,” he said.

Mayor Isko Moreno is known for solving problems in his city with diplomacy first. However, in his recent weekly capital report, the viral public official was already fed up with one issue he’s trying to solve.

On August 2, Moreno gave an ultimatum to the jeepney drivers along Tayuman-Pritil to discontinue loading passengers in illegal terminals or else they’re going to lose their franchise.

“Ayaw niyo talagang umalis diyan ha sa Espirito Santo (Church) sa gitna at Tayuman, ayaw niyong makinig? Susunod tatangalin ko na kayo sa Maynila,” the Mayor said.

“So it’s either mang gulang kayo ng mangulang or itigil niyo nalang, dahil kung hindi, hindi lang pila ang mawawala sa inyo, yung hanap buhay ninyo, aalisin ko, dahil hindi maganda na nakakapag hanap buhay kayo pero nakakapang api kayo ng mga kapwa natin mahihirap,” he added.

According to Moreno, he already warned the jeepney drivers many times, but he found out that they’re still loading and unloading passengers in illegal terminals which made him disappointed.

He also revealed that many netizens are already complaining about the inconvenience being brought by the illegal terminals.

“Talagang matigas ang ulo ninyo, ni-rereport na kayo ng mga netizen na ginagawa nyong Terminal parin yung tapat ng 7/11 along Tayuman,” Moreno said.

“Mag meeting meeting na kayo dahil kayo na ang isusunod namin,” he added.

During his report, he also showed the complaint their file in the LTFRB to suspend the Pritil-Tayuman jeepney franchise.

Moreno was really disappointed that he’s still required to lecture the jeepney drivers on what is right or wrong despite being older than him.

He also revealed that he gave a terminal for the jeepney drivers along Tayuman-Pritil, but they still chose to go back to their illegal stations.

“Ang tatanda niyo na, ang hirap niyong mapagsabihan… di kayo madiplomasya, talaga yatang sagad hanggang buto ang katigasan ng ulo ninyo,” he said.

“Galit kayo sa masasamang ugali ng mga Politiko sa Gobyerno pero sarili ninyo ay hindi niyo makita sa salamin,”

The illegal terminal along Tayuman-Pritil has already been a problem of Manila for years and it was featured in television many times because of the unending clearing operations along the area.

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