VP Binay to remain focused on his job despite challenges —spokesman

Vice President Jejomar Binay, faced with corruption allegation and decreasing popularity rating, will remain focused on his job despite the challenges he is currently facing, his spokesman said Friday.

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Palace brushes aside Church-led group's call for PNoy to resign

Malacañang on Friday brushed aside the call by a multi-sectoral group led by Roman Catholic bishops for President Benigno Aquino III to resign after supposedly "damaging the moral fabric of society."

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PHL int’l relations expert to HK protesters: ‘Think of possible consequences’

The army of young, "hot-blooded" protesters in Hong Kong may be taking things a little too fast in calling for democracy in their city, a Filipino international relations expert said Friday.

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Drilon affirms subcommittee jurisdiction over Makati Building II probe

Senate President Franklin Drilon on Friday affirmed as valid the Senate blue ribbon subcommittee's ruling asserting its jurisdiction over the investigation in the alleged overpricing in the Makati City Hall Building II project.

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Group set to gather 2M signatures by Nov 30 for PNoy’s re-election

The group behind a full-page newspaper ad urging President Benigno Aquino III to seek re-election in 2016, finally came out and said its members are determined to gather an initial two million signatures by November 30, which it will present to the President.

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PNoy forms national panel to organize papal visit

President Benigno Aquino III has formed a national panel composed of Cabinet officials led by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. to lead government preparations for Pope Francis' visit to the Philippines in January next year.

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DFA says solidarity rally in Manila to support HK demonstrators a ‘freedom of expression’

The Philippine government may have distanced itself from the ongoing civil unrest in Hong Kong, but said it cannot prevent Filipino groups or individuals from staging demonstrations to express support for Hong Kong citizens demanding full electoral rights from China.

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Arroyo allies seek house arrest for Gloria Arroyo after choking incident

Allies of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo on Thursday appealed to the Sandiganbayan anew to allow her to be placed under house arrest as her condition remains fragile following the choking incident she experienced last month.

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Problem emailing Immigration bureau? Official email account undergoing systems upgrade

For the next few days, people transacting with the Bureau of Immigration may want to send a copy of their email to a backup email account of the agency.

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FDA: Batches of eye drop solution recalled

Consumers may want to avoid buying a specific batch of eye drops after they were recalled from the market, the Philippine Food and Drug Administration said.

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11-hr brownout in Northern Samar on Saturday – NGCP

In an advisory, the NGCP said power interruption will affect the Northern Samar Electric Cooperative franchise from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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Cops release photo of Cherry Pie Picache's mom's suspected killer

Police on Thursday released a photo of a man they suspect of having killed the mother of actress Cherry Pie Picache last month.

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Prosecution, defense wrangle over access to Benhur’s computer files

Despite a ruling from the Sandiganbayan earlier this week, members of the prosecution and the defense panels in Sen. Ramon "Bong" Revilla’s bail hearing still butted heads over the proper handling of a controversial piece of evidence in the pork barrel scam.

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DBM yet to resubmit corrections to budget bill; House panel considers errata withdrawn

The Department of Budget and Management has yet to submit the errata it wants to include in the P2.6-trillion national budget for 2015, almost a week after the House of Representatives approved the proposal on second reading.

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Cebu Institute of Technology grad tops electronics engineering board exams

A graduate of Cebu Institute of Technology bested 1,532 who passed the Electronics Engineer Licensure Examination in September, the Professional Regulation Commission said on Thursday.

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Arroyo allies Yap, Nograles deny involvement in PDAF misuse

Bohol Rep. Arthur Yap on Thursday denied any involvement in the alleged misuse of pork barrel funds amounting to P163.2 million while he was Agriculture secretary during the Arroyo administration.

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One of three out of 42,000: Aquino's barangay in Tarlac City gets P3.5 million in DAP

The barangay where President Benigno Aquino III's votes in Tarlac City was one of three barangays that were fortunate enough to receive allocations from the multibillion-peso Disbursement Acceleration Program before the Supreme Court deemed it partially unconstitutional, GMA News' "24 Oras" reported on Thursday.

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Nueva Ecija property just an ordinary house, PNP chief Purisima insists

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima on Thursday defended his P3.7-million property in San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija, insisting that there was nothing extravagant about the 4.7-hectare lot.

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Firms confirm donating for renovation of PNP's ‘White House’, deny dealings with police

Two of the companies have confirmed being donors for the controversial renovation of the Philippine National Police (PNP) chief's official quarters inside Camp Crame.

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PNP chief Purisima should be circumspect in his actions – Palace

After days of defending Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima, Malacañang on Thursday said the head of the police force is expected to be circumspect in his actions.

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Makati official hits senators for breaking confidentiality of preliminary audit report

A Makati City official on Thursday scored the Senate Blue Ribbon subcommittee for forcing the Commission on Audit to make public its preliminary report on the alleged overpriced construction of Makati City Hall Building II.

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Ex-DA chief Yap, ex-Speaker Nograles face graft complaints over pork scam

Ombudsman investigators has filed complaints for graft against former Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, and three former congressmen in connection with the alleged misuse of pork barrel funds amounting to P163.2 million.

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After surviving impeach raps, PNoy won’t waste time on critics

A month after surviving three impeachment complaints at the House of Representatives, President Benigno Aquino III said Thursday said he does not want to waste his time on his detractors.

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US, PHL forces ‘careful’ vs. identifying PHIBLEX with West PHL Sea dispute

As joint military exercises by Philippine and American forces continue in Palawan, officials are careful to identify the ongoing "war games" with the disputed waters in the West Philippine Sea.

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Even with poll result vs. Cha-cha, Palace to continue consultations

Despite a survey indicating the unpopularity of Charter change (Cha-cha) among Filipinos, a Malacañang official said Thursday that it would continue efforts to gauge public sentiment on amending the 1987 Constitution.

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Why P4-M bullet-proof SUV isn’t in Alan Purisima’s SALN

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima on Thursday defended the non-inclusion of a bullet-proof Land Cruiser in his Statements of Assets Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN), saying that it was a borrowed SUV.

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Cayetano offers VP Binay chance to cross examine witnesses

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Thursday challenged Vice President Jejomar Binay to show up in the Senate investigation on the alleged overpriced construction of a Makati City parking building.

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PNP chief Purisima admits having another property in Nueva Ecija

Aside from his P3.75-million property in San Leonardo town in Nueva Ecija, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Dir. Gen. Alan Purisima on Thursday admitted owning another property, this time, in Palayan City also in the same province.

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Alan Purisima hits media for coverage of questioned mansion

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima on Thursday scored some media personalities over alleged malicious reports on his 4.7-hectare property in San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija.

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Ombudsman investigator admits ‘pork’ probe was hinged on Benhur’s word

An investigator assigned to weed out the truth regarding the multibillion peso pork barrel scam on Thursday admitted that he took principal whistleblower Benhur Luy's word for matters regarding accounts of nongovernment organizations linked to trader Janet Lim-Napoles.

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No irregularities in purchase of Nueva Ecija property, PNP chief Purisima insists

Philippine National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima on Thursday defended his P3.7 million property in Nueva Ecija, insisting that there were no irregularities in its purchase.

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COA: Undue haste in construction of Makati Building II irregular

The Commission on Audit found the undue haste in the construction of the controversial Makati City Hall Building II as irregular.

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‘Abot Alam’ DepEd-NYC program aims for zero out-of-school youths

A newly launched program headed by the Department of Education and National Youth Commission hopes to "eradicate" out-of-school youths by 2016.

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Probe on Makati Building II resumes despite Junjun Binay’s plea

The Senate blue ribbon subcommittee on Thursday resumed its investigation into the alleged overpriced construction of the Makati City Hall building II despite the appeal of Mayor Junjun Binay's camp to stop the congressional inquiry on the matter.

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Expect higher fees at Port of Manila to result in costlier Christmas goods, truckers say

Consumers were given advance notice Wednesday by truckers that some goods that will go on sale this Christmas will cost more because of higher storage costs at the Port of Manila.

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Only hooks left at Imelda’s condo: Agents miss Picasso, Pisarro in NBI operation

Rare and expensive paintings by various masters were no longer at the condominium unit of former First Lady Imelda Marcos when National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) tried to seize them, GMA News' Kara David reported on "24 Oras" Wednesday.

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8 gun dealers suspended after failure to account for 116 imported rifles

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas has ordered the suspension of eight firearm dealers' license to operate over their failure to account for 116 imported firearms.

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PhilGEPS: P4B worth of govt contracts awarded to 2 PNP ‘White House’ donors

Two of the three companies that donated to the controversial renovation of the Philippine National Police chief's official quarters inside Camp Crame are no strangers to the government. According to Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS), Pacific Concrete Corp. and Ulticon Builders had bagged contracts from government agencies amounting to P4 billion, with some contracts dating back to 2009. The renovation was one of the bases for the filing of graft and plunder complaints against PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima.

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Imelda felt ‘violated’ by artwork seizure, says her lawyer

Former first lady Imelda Marcos felt "violated" after the authorities searched her homes and offices and seized art pieces, her lawyer said on Wednesday.

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NBI warns vs. buying Marcos ill-gotten paintings

Government agents on Wednesday warned the public against buying paintings believed to be part of the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcos family.

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Finance officer appointed NFA officer-in-charge

National Food Authority assistant administrator for finance Efren Sabong will take charge of the agency or now, following the resignation of its chief, Arthur Juan, last week.

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Jinggoy pushes for DOJ undersecretary’s removal from ‘pork’ prosecution panel

Senator Jinggoy Estrada has filed a motion asking the Sandiganbayan to reconsider its decision allowing Justice Undersecretary Jose Justiniano to be part of the prosecution team handling pork barrel cases.

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421 pass Chemist Licensure Exam –PRC

A total of 421 out of 705 passed the Chemist Licensure Examination given by the Board of Chemistry in Manila last month, the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announced on Wednesday.

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Stop Makati Building II probe, Mayor Binay’s camp asks Senate panel

The camp of Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. on Wednesday asked the Senate blue ribbon committee to stop its investigation into the alleged overpricing of the Makati City Hall Building II project until after their question on its jurisdictional authority is answered.

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Palace says Purisima answered questions with candor, truthfully

Some senators may have been unsettled with Philippine National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima's explanations on his wealth, but for Malacañang, the country's top cop still has the moral ascendancy to lead the national police force.

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No rescue ops yet for German hostages in Sulu –AFP chief

The military cannot immediately launch an operation to rescue the two German tourists abducted by the bandit group Abu Sayyaf as “the situation needs to be carefully analyzed,” Armed Forces chief Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said Wednesday.

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SC wants see-through bags for Bar examinees

The Supreme Court has just taken the concept of “transparency” to the next level... and literally at that.

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Authenticity of seized paintings from Marcoses’ ancestral house sketchy – NBI

The authenticity of the 15 paintings seized from the ancestral house of the Marcoses in San Juan City seemed questionable, an official of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) admitted.

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PNP to personnel: Be careful in giving away business cards

Following the controversy involving a ranking police official and a pretty female model, the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Wednesday reminded its personnel to be diligent in giving away their business cards.

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Apply four-day workweek option to govt agencies nationwide, solon asks

With power supply seen to be tight in the summer months of 2015, the Civil Service Commission (CSC) should consider making the four-day workweek scheme optional for government agencies nationwide to help conserve electricity, the chair of the House labor committee said Wednesday.

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