by jariusbondoc | Jul 15, 2026 | Gotcha
Plans to impeach Audit commissioner Mario Lipana are shelved.
Lipana, 66, was implicated last year in P1.4-billion “allocables,” or overpriced DPWH contracts. State witnesses ex-Usec. Roberto Bernardo and Bulacan district engineer Henry Alcantara swore in Senate inquiries that he took cuts from flood work allocations.
Lipana’s wife Marilou Laurio, 54, was also reported to own three companies with hundred million-peso contracts with DPWH and DENR. The Commission on Audit scrutinizes contract performance and payments received from government agencies.
If not impeached soon, Lipana will retire on Feb. 2, 2027. He will be entitled to retirement benefits for 44 years in civil service, plus monthly pension equivalent to present pay – around P240,000.
The Constitution forbids an audit, civil service or election commissioner from “holding any other office or employment; neither shall he engage in the practice of any profession or in the active management or control of any business which in any way may be affected by the functions of his office;
“Nor shall he be financially interested, directly or indirectly, in any contract with, or in any franchise or privilege granted by the Government, any of its subdivisions, agencies or instrumentalities, including government-owned or -controlled corporations or their subsidiaries.” (Article IX, Constitutional Commissions, Section 2)
Alcantara incriminated Lipana on Sept. 23, 2025 at the Senate Blue Ribbon committee: “Noong 2022 humingi si Lipana sa akin ng listahan ng flood control projects sa Bulacan. Wala akong personal knowledge kung paano nila nakuha ang pondo at kung sino ang kausap nila.”
Lipana got P500 million for flood mitigation in 2023, P400 million in 2024 and P500 million in 2025 – P1.4 billion in all, Alcantara said.
Bernardo confirmed Alcantara’s assertions. He told the BRC that Lipana was among the high officials who took cuts from flood control allocations.
After questioning the two, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan remarked: “Paano magiging maayos ang audit kung mayroong hinihiling na proyekto sa inyo? We should perhaps refer the matter of Commissioner Lipana’s involvement to the Senate committee on justice because this looks like an impeachable offense.”
Mamamayang Liberal party-list Rep. Leila de Lima picked up the issue. She said in an interview Nov. 25 with broadcaster Ted Failon, “I am convinced this is covered by all-encompassing betrayal of public trust.” She was to collaborate with ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio and Kamanggagawa Rep. Eli San Fernando.
But Pangilinan and De Lima are now busy with the 92-day trial of impeached VP Sara Duterte. Pangilinan is a senator-judge and De Lima a congresswoman-prosecutor.
The justice committee’s probe was “held in abeyance in deference to the BRC investigation,” Pangilinan told this writer yesterday. De Lima said “no impeachment complaint filed yet.” Tinio said, “Wala po kaming plano mag-file [ng kaso].” San Fernando did not reply to queries for update.
Lipana absented from the BRC. He went on medical leave starting Aug. 1, 2025. That was after President Bongbong Marcos’ State of the Nation on July 28, when he revealed the extent of the flood works scandal and told the scammers, “Mahiya naman kayo!”
Wife Laurio came under press scrutiny. Bilyonaryo News reported Sept. 25 that her Olympus Mining and Builders Group had nine ongoing DPWH contracts in Bulacan. Those included flood controls and farm-to-market roads worth P326.6 million. Olympus also received P178.52 million for flood works.
Right to Know Right Now coalition followed up on Oct. 14. It cited DPWH’s P959-million contract in 2021 for the new COA building in Quezon City. A main contractor was Le Bron Construction. A sole proprietorship, Le Bron was a partner of Laurio’s Olympus in nine of the latter’s 22 DPWH contracts in 2023-2025.
Le Bron’s manager is an incorporator of Laurio’s Iron Ore. Another incorporator is surnamed Lipana. Not mentioned is the latter’s relation to COA’s Lipana, who wedded Laurio in October 2022.
Laurio first hit the headlines in October 2024 when she and another government contractor ran as first and third nominees of a vendor’s party-list. Kontra Daya election watchdog criticized her party, among others, for claiming to represent the marginalized but actually consists of multimillionaires.
Ted Failon asked her about her two ongoing DPWH contracts, each for P95 million in June 2024 for roadway lighting in Meycauayan and Marilao, Bulacan.
This column reported the 2021 bid of Laurio’s Iron Ore, Gold and Vanadium Resources for DENR’s offshore magnetite mining in 10,000 hectares of Lingayen Gulf. Also the March 2022 bid of her Gembar Enterprises for MMDA’s solar-powered LED streetlights in seven Quezon City locations.
Lipana joined COA in 1983. On Jan. 17, 2022 president Rody Duterte appointed him COA commissioner for a seven-year term till Feb. 2, 2027.
The Civil Service Commission requires retiring officials to file their intention with the agency’s HR department 120 days prior. Clearances and application documents must be given to the concerned pension agency 90 days prior. Benefits, gratuities and terminal leave payments are released 30 days before retirement.
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by jariusbondoc | Jul 10, 2026 | Gotcha
The Senate spends P25 million a day.
Sherwin Gatchalian estimated the cost on June 2, amid the Senate’s 28-day leadership standoff. He lamented as erstwhile finance committee chairman:
“Every day ang Senate gumagastos ng P25 million sa kuryente, sa utilities, sa sweldo, pero walang session na nangyari. Walang batas o resolution na na-approve. Pati military personnel natin, hindi na-confirm ang promotion. Sayang ang bayad ng taong bayan sa atin.”
The standoff wasted P700 million. That’s from May 11 when 13 senators staged a coup to install Alan Cayetano as Senate President, to June 17 when things settled down with Gatchalian’s ascension.
Panfilo Lacson posted on X, June 18:
“The Philippine Senate in 28 days under Alan Cayetano: Estimated cost – P700M. Output – chaos, gunfire, Bato’s escape despite ICC-issued warrant while under its ‘protective custody,’ session boycott, failed destabilization attempt, unauthorized committee hearings highlighted by one not presided nor attended by a single senator.
“What a waste of taxpayers’ money!”
VP Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial will take 92 days. Senators had better use up the time wisely, attentively, studiously.
On Wednesday, July 8, the third hearing day, senators got the chance to question first witness, NBI special agent John Mark Calilung. Testifying for four hours the previous day and two hours that afternoon, he detailed that:
A 2016 law reorganized and modernized the NBI. It requires the agency to investigate motu proprio any threat against the President, VP, Senate President, House Speaker or Chief Justice.
He was assigned to investigate Sara’s Nov. 23, 2024 late-night livestream press conference during which she allegedly announced to assassinate President Bongbong Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta and then-Speaker Martin Romualdez.
He first screen-recorded the livestream which was publicly available. He next secured an official copy from Meta, which runs Facebook. He reported it to his superiors. He executed an affidavit when summoned by the House committee on justice.
One interpolator was Robinhood Padilla.
Padilla: “Hindi po naibigay ‘yong original copy nu’ng isinagawang interview kay Vice President Sara Duterte? ‘Yong original po na kopya, kung sino po ‘yong nag-record? Wala po kayong affidavit? Meron po ba kayong affidavit na nakuha niyo?”
Calilung: “Yes, sir. Ako po ‘yong nag- ang inire-request po ng DOJ diyan is affidavit po nu’ng nag-screen record, which is my affidavit, Your Honor.”
Padilla: “Meron po siyang affidavit?”
Calilung: “Ako, sir. Ako po ‘yong nag-execute, sir.”
Padilla: “Kasi ‘di po ‘yong mismong tao.”
Calilung: “Yes po. Ang hinihingi po kasi ni DOJ is kung sino ‘yong nag-screen record through OBS [Open Broadcasting Software], sir.”
Padilla: “Hmm. Hindi po ‘yong mismong tao?”
Calilung: “Yes, Your Honor.”
Padilla: “Kayo lang po ‘yong nag-affidavit?”
Calilung: “Yes, Your Honor.”
Padilla: “Pero meron po kayong pagkakataon ba na nakausap niyo ‘yong tao at nagbigay siya ng affidavit?”
Calilung: “May I clarify, Your Honor, if sinong tao ‘yong tinutukoy?”
Padilla: “’Yong nag-record po.”
Calilung: “Ako po ‘yong nag-record through OBS, sir.”
Padilla: “Hindi po. ‘Yong mismong nag-record po kay Inday, sa Vice President. Nakausap niyo po ba? ‘Yong raw file. Kasi napakahalaga po no’n. Kasi doon natin malalaman kung original ba o hindi.”
Calilung: “The video itself, sir, is publicly available. That’s why I performed the recording, sir.”
Padilla: “Opo. Pakisagot na lang po, mahal na saksi, kung nakuha niyo ba ‘yong original. ‘Yong original, hindi po ‘yong galing sa internet.”
Calilung: “The original, no, sir.”
Padilla: “Okay. ‘Yon lamang po.”
Duh!
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July 12 is the 10th anniversary of the Philippine victory at the Permanent Court of Arbitration. It comes at a time of deep national division, surprise demonstrations and political standoffs.
Rafael Alunan, national security expert and former Cabinet member, views these as “highly favorable to Beijing.” He analyzes in his BusinessWorld column:
“Communist ?China aims to dismantle the administration’s foreign policy that integrates the US, Japan, Canada and Australia.
“Beijing doesn’t need a hot war. A government that’s too consumed by internal crises serves China’s strategic interests just as effectively. Principal groups and political entities act directly with Beijing’s regional objectives:
“(1) Populist Subversive Faction (Duterte bloc) – This is the most potent force aligning with Beijing’s interests. It campaigns to reverse the country’s pivot to the US and advocates a return to pro-Beijing policies of the previous admin.
“This faction frames the administration’s assertiveness in WPS as ‘warmongering’ and economically unstable.
“(2) Sectarian Front (Iglesia ni Cristo) – While INC is a religious institution, its front-facing political actors and rigid voting bloc have historically aligned with pro-Beijing politicos. A government forced to deploy police resources and political capital to manage a permit-less, top-down religious revolt is a government distracted from tracking aggressive gray-zone tactics on land, air and sea.
“(3) Localized Espionage – ?This consists of covert operations to manipulate local governments, control critical coastal real estate and establish intelligence-gathering outposts close to sensitive military areas.
“?Operating under the radar through illegal POGOs or local businesses, this network infiltrates municipal politics, subverts immigration and election laws and builds infrastructure for cyber-warfare and intelligence-gathering.
“(4) Ideological Propaganda and Media Echo Chamber – A network of local media personnel, commentators and pro-Beijing think tanks mirror Chinese state-media narratives to shape Filipino public opinion. Key entities include the Integrated Development Studies Institute, pro-Beijing columnists and digital troll networks.
“They propagate the idea that the Philippines is being used as a ‘pawn’ by western powers, amplify threats about economic ruin and downplay documented China Coast Guard aggressions as ‘neighbor misunderstandings.’
“By backing and defending politicians facing serious legal accountability, these groups function as proxies, using opportunistic anti-corruption rhetoric to cultivate a China-friendly narrative while causing a crisis of state legitimacy.”
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by jariusbondoc | Jul 8, 2026 | Gotcha
The arrest Monday of Sen. Rodante Marcoleta for nonbailable plunder opens a likelihood. More senator-judges being investigated for serious offenses can also be jailed.
That raises a question: what if 11 of them are unable to finish the trial, how will the 13 remnants render judgment on impeached VP Sara Duterte?
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Trial will take 92 days – 62 days for the prosecution and 30 days for the defense to present evidence and witnesses. With only three hearing days a week, trial will last seven months, says Senate Secretary Renato Bantug.
The ombudsman and Dept. of Justice are pursuing cases against certain politicos, including senators. Indictments can come within the seven months.
Three senators are so far engaged:
(1) Marcoleta, P75-million bribery and plunder, which places him under suspension and detention during trial (Plunder Law, RA 7080);
(2) Jinggoy Estrada, P573-million flood works plunder, suspended and detained since June 1;
(3) Bato dela Rosa, in hiding from an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for crimes against humanity.
Eight more senators reportedly are facing criminal complaints:
(4) Chiz Escudero, P586-million flood works plunder, filed by the ombudsman from confessions of ex-DPWH Usec. Roberto Bernardo;
(5) Joel Villanueva, P150-million flood works plunder, filed by the ombudsman from testimony of ex-DPWH engineer Henry Alcantara;
(6) Mark Villar, graft in awarding P18-billion contract to his cousin while he was DPWH secretary, filed by the ombudsman, and P1.33-trillion stock market manipulation filed by the SEC with DOJ;
(7) Camille Villar, co-accused with brother Mark in P1.33-trillion stock market manipulation;
(8) Loren Legarda, under DOJ investigation for graft because possibly linked to son Rep. Leandro Leviste’s P24-billion failed franchise, filed by Energy Sec. Sharon Garin (indictment merits suspension, Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practice Act, RA 3019);
(9) Robin Padilla, obstruction of justice in aiding fugitive Bato escape NBI arrest, filed with the ombudsman but bailable;
(10) Alan Cayetano, co-accused with Padilla (the ombudsman has sacked his Senate sergeant-at-arms Mao Aplasca for the same offense);
(11) Bong Go, reportedly also to be named by ICC as co-perpetrator of Rody Duterte in crimes against humanity.
If all 11 are out of commission on judgment day, then what will be the threshold to convict Sara?
Conviction means removal and permanent disqualification from office. The Constitution requires “concurrence of two-thirds of all the members of the Senate” (Article XI, Accountability of Public Officers, Section 3).
Under normal situations, two-thirds is 16 of 24 senators. Escudero stressed that last Monday as impeachment court Presiding Officer.
But what about during unusual times, when even PO Escudero might be jailed?
Trial lawyer Dino de Leon challenges the interpretation that conviction always requires 16 votes, calling it “contrary to the spirit of the Constitution.” The Constitution deliberately says two-thirds, not 16, because the framers knew that Senate membership is not static, the Bantay Senado co-convenor explains:
“Senators may resign, die, become incapacitated or be legally unable to perform their duties.
“If 10 out of 24 senators resign, are imprisoned or become legally incapacitated, does that mean the Senate loses forever its constitutional power to convict an impeachable officer? Surely, the Constitution never intended for an instance when accountability will no longer be possible.”
This stems from the 1949 Supreme Court verdict in Avelino v. Cuenco. It said Senate voting requirements must be understood in light of members who are legally unable to participate.
The SC ruled on the dispute over the Senate presidency. It said that internal leadership battles are political questions. Nonetheless, it confirmed that a constitutional majority required for a quorum is based on the remaining members who are capable of attending, rather than the absolute total of all elected senators.
Retired SC Justice Antonio Carpio expounded on it three weeks ago. At that time, only Estrada and Dela Rosa were unable to exercise senatorial powers and functions, including the right to vote as senator.
With only 22 senators functioning, the two-thirds vote to convict should thus be only 15, Carpio said.
Father Ranhilio Aquino, dean of San Beda Graduate School of Law, said that a good number of fellow law educators in their chatgroup share Carpio’s stand.
Abdiel Dan Fajardo, former president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, cited two instances when senators cannot hold office and vote in proceedings:
• When charged with plunder, graft and corruption or similar grievous cases; or
• When under preventive detention or serving criminal sentence.
Citing two SC rulings, People v. Maceda and Trillanes v. Pimentel, he told Rappler: “All prisoners, whether under preventive detention or serving final sentence, cannot practice their profession nor engage in any business or occupation, or hold office, elective or appointive, while in detention.”
Siding with Carpio, UP Law associate dean Paolo Tamase told Rappler: “We need to recognize and accept that we are in unprecedented times in terms of the number of senators possibly facing criminal charges, plus the agenda of the Senate. While the conventional view had made sense for the most part of our history, the emerging view seems persuasive if we intend a functional Senate and functional constitutional processes.”
Alan Cayetano proposed that the Senate request the Sandiganbayan to let Marcoleta and Estrada attend the impeachment hearings. That would not only be self-serving in case he too is jailed. It would also make senators special citizens even if criminally indicted.
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by jariusbondoc | Jul 3, 2026 | Gotcha
Mike Defensor’s first controversy was in July 2006. As president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s chief of staff, he co-signed the award to ZTE Int’l Corp. of goldmining rights in Mt. Diwalwal, Davao.
Aliens are banned from mining. ZTE Int’l was a newly formed adjunct of China telecoms giant ZTE Corp. A “greedy group” was then brokering the $329-million national broadband network, overpriced by $200 million or P10 billion.
Separate inquiries ensued at the Senate and House of Reps. The initial $10-million payola to Malacañang was exposed, along with a P200-million bribe offer to a Cabinet member. Aside from Defensor, three more Cabinet men were implicated. Arroyo had to cancel both the Diwalwal and broadband deals.
Defensor was secretary of environment and natural resources from August 2004 to February 2006. He was accused of conflict of interest in promoting a powerful congressman’s Nihao Mineral Resources Int’l and Geograce Resources. After Arroyo’s term, Defensor emerged as founder and majority owner in 2012 of Majestic Earth Core Ventures and in 2014 of Pax Libera Mining.
During Noynoy Aquino’s presidency, Majestic came to operate the largest of 15 rock quarries in San Rafael, Rodriguez (Montalban), Rizal. It is blamed for yearly deadly floods in Greater Manila. Majestic also owns a quarry and crushing plant in Calbayog, Western Samar.
Early in Rody Duterte’s term, April 2017, DENR secretary Gina Lopez helicoptered over Rodriguez quarries. She presented to lawmakers and newsmen videos and photos of a 200-hectare gaping hole in the mountainside. The quarry was illegal because it is inside the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape. DENR secretary Angel Alcala had in fact declared the area starting 1993 a no-touch zone.
Guess who quarried that mountainside?
Defensor and fellow party-list congressman Rodante Marcoleta teamed up in 2020 to quash the franchise and close down media giant ABS-CBN. Thousands lost jobs at the height of pandemic. Politicos Manny Villar and Martin Romualdez took over the franchise and facilities, respectively.
In January 2025, Defensor and two businessmen donated P75 million to Congressman Marcoleta. Comelec is investigating the nondisclosure of the contribution by both donors and donee. The ombudsman was to file this week plunder and bribery charges against them. Plunder is nonbailable and merits life term.
Defensor was behind the pop-up in September 2025 of ex-soldier Orly Guteza, who claimed to have delivered suitcases of cash to former boss Rep. Zaldy Co and Speaker Martin Romualdez. Guteza then vanished.
Defensor in February 2026 came up with 18 more ex-soldiers, mostly dishonorably discharged for going AWOL. They too claimed to have delivered suitcases of cash to Romualdez, President Bongbong Marcos and Congressman-son Sandro Marcos. Also to Sens. Loren Legarda and Mark Villar, ex-senator Sonny Trillanes and others.
The 18 later exonerated Legarda and Villar, but implicated Sen. Chiz Escudero. They refused to submit to the ombudsman individual instead of joint affidavit.
Last June 15, Defensor, not a senator, announced a hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee in a private events place the next day. No senator attended. Only four of 14 more ex-soldiers showed up to implicate more officials unsympathetic to Defensor, Marcoleta and impeached VP Sara Duterte.
Previous to that, Apr. 21, NBI raided Chicago KTV Bar and Bleu Hotel in Pasig City operated by Defensor and wife Julie Rose. Rescued were 55 trafficked women, mostly foreigners. Arrested were several managers and supervisors. Strewn in bathroom sinks and trashcans were used condoms, lubricants and pregnancy test kits.
For two months the NBI scrutinized construction blueprints and corporate documents. It found out that concrete walls separating the ground floor KTV bar gave way to mere curtain dividers and stairways up to two office halls on the second floor. The two halls were modified into six bedrooms with baths.
The NBI concluded that Mike and spouse owned and controlled the bar and hotel as chairman, president and supermajority stockholders of interlocking corporations. Chicago KTV and Bleu Hotel are lessors of Cliffpoint Development Corp. Other stockholders are Pax Libera Mining, Zerrin Corp. and 5Mikes Corp.
Aside from spouses Defensor, offspring Michaela Defensor as corporate secretary and Miguel as treasurer are majority owners.
Last Friday, the NBI filed qualified human trafficking raps against Defensor, spouse, two offspring and two directors.
Human trafficking under RA 9208 includes prostitution, illegal recruitment, exploitation, coercion, fraud, deception, abuse of power or position or taking advantage of the vulnerable. “Most of the 55 rescued women are single mothers,” NBI Director Melvin Matibag said.
“Qualified” means syndicated, making the offense nonbailable with life term.
Branding the charges as politically motivated, Defensor said a Cabinet member and a senator are stockholders of Cliffpoint Development. “Huwag kayo maniwala kay Matibag dahil ‘yan ay bobo, tanga.” He posted on Facebook a photo of BBM holding a pug with Matibag’s face superimposed on the head.
Matibag dared Defensor to name the Cabinet man and senator, so the NBI can charge them too.
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by jariusbondoc | Jul 1, 2026 | Gotcha
Sen. Rodante Marcoleta admitted to not disclosing campaign contributions for the May 2025 election. He was unstoppable in a Nov. 8, 2025 interview on Net25 (translated from Filipino):
“Friends did contribute to me. They had only one request: ‘Accept our donation.’ I was congressman then. ‘Cong, we believe you deserve to go to the Senate; please accept this amount.’ There were several of them.
“They had one request: ‘Please do not disclose our identities.’ So if I put a figure in the contributions, I would have been forced to name names. Why? Because there’s a corresponding Deed of Acceptance of Donation. What happens then? This is a contribution.
“They said, ‘No, we’re giving you a contribution, but that is your debt of gratitude to us. Treat it as debt.’ They called it debt, debt with no need for repayment, debt of gratitude. So since I cannot disclose their identities, I stated zero contributions. I will be forced to write zero.
“Had I stated amounts, I would’ve been forced to name them one by one. Now it is not possible for me to not spend what you gave me. I know that you know each other. For example, if I state expenditure of P5 million, they would be able to compute things.
“They might say Cong Dante kept the remainder. Tignan mo nga naman ang buhay, nanalo na, kumita pa. He won, yet also profited. I didn’t want that, because they entrusted me with the sum. So I had to spend it. It was impossible for me not to spend it because they gave it to me – because they wanted me to win. They trusted me. Is there a law that says I should force them to disclose? Show me such law.
“It was impossible for me to not spend it. So that’s how much I spent. They gave it to me, they entrusted it to me, because they wanted me to win.”
So in his Statement of Contributions and Expenditures, Marcoleta swore to receiving zero but spending P112.8 million
Investigating him on Nov. 21, Comelec found no wrong. Congress had decriminalized such nondisclosure since 1991. Under RA 7166 only contributors are required to report.
Still, the Office of the Ombudsman dug deeper. It found out that Marcoleta accepted P75 million from ex-congressman Mike Defensor and businessmen Joseph Espiritu and Aristotle Viray.
The ombudsman’s field investigation bureau smelled plunder. RA 7080, amended by RA 7659, states that “plunder is committed by a public officer who, by himself or in conspiracy with others, accumulates, amasses or acquires ill-gotten wealth through a series or combination of overt or criminal acts, amounting to at least P50 million.”
FIB listed a series and combination of offenses, including:
• Bribery of a congressman;
• Falsification of SOCE which, although decriminalized, is still fined P1,000-P30,000;
• Nonreporting of contributions by the trio.
It deemed Marcoleta to have personally gained P75 million and Senate victory, while Defensor et al earned a debt of gratitude. The Sandiganbayan issued May 18 a precautionary hold departure order to prevent the four from fleeing the country.
Plunder is nonbailable. Indictees are suspended from office and jailed while on trial.
In a counter affidavit mid-June, Marcoleta claimed:
• He didn’t disclose the P75 million to the Comelec because it was given in January 2025, a month before the campaign period commenced on Feb. 11, 2025;
• He also didn’t mention the P75 million in his SALN of December 2025 because he had already spent it for his campaign, thus his net worth of only P16.7 million;
• There was no plunder because the P75 million was not government money.
The ombudsman didn’t buy Marcoleta’s claims. Plunder does not specify funds from the government and punishes mere illegal enrichment by at least P50 million.
On Facebook, Marcoleta said the admin wants him out of office. It supposedly aims to prevent him from participating in the trial of impeached VP Sara Duterte. Also from investigating the P1.7-trillion flood works scam which his archfoe Sen. Ping Lacson exposed.
Last Monday, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said Marcoleta et al will be indicted for plunder this week:
“I didn’t even ask for this to happen. All the evidence came from you know where. We did not seek this, but this happened because motu proprio, apparently the crime was committed in open knowledge of everybody.”
Ang isda ay nahuhuli sa bunganga, the Tagalogs say.
(See Marcoleta interview on Net25: https://tinyurl.com/Marcoleta-P112M-Campaign-Fund)
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by jariusbondoc | Jun 26, 2026 | Gotcha
The Revised Penal Code defines murder via certain elements:
“Article 248. Murder. Any person who … shall kill another, shall be guilty of murder and shall be punished by reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death, if committed with any of the following attendant circumstances:
“(1) With treachery, taking advantage of superior strength, with the aid of armed men, or employing means to weaken the defense or of means or persons to insure or afford impunity;
“(2) In consideration of a price, reward or promise;
“(3) By means of inundation, fire, poison, explosion, shipwreck, stranding of a vessel, derailment or assault upon a street car or locomotive, fall of an airship, by means of motor vehicles, or with the use of any other means involving great waste and ruin;
“(4) On occasion of any of the calamities enumerated in the preceding paragraph, or of an earthquake, eruption of a volcano, destructive cyclone, epidemic, or any other public calamity;
“(5) With evident premeditation;
“(6) With cruelty, by deliberately and inhumanly augmenting the suffering of the victim, or outraging or scoffing at his person or corpse.”
Police charged 15-year-old “Rod” Wednesday with three counts of murder, three counts of frustrated murder and several counts of physical injuries. This was for the fatal shooting of three schoolmates, emergency surgery of three more, plus serious injuries to 20 others, including teachers, Monday at San Jose National High School in Tacloban City.
Companion “Nash,” 14, wasn’t criminally charged. Social workers and psychiatrists are evaluating him for long-term rehabilitation. That’s under the 2006 Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act.
Police reconstructed the events. Ninth grade classmates Rod and Nash planned their attack. They supposedly had online exchanges setting it for Monday. They sneaked firearms into campus: Rod a .38-caliber revolver and Nash a 9-mm pistol.
They attended the 7:30 a.m. flag raising in school attire. At around 8:30 they changed clothing in the male toilet. Rod put on a white t-shirt. Nash donned a black t-shirt with white lettering “KMFDM,” supposedly similar to that of one of the perpetrators of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre in Colorado.
They strode back to their classroom then fired at will. Police found only one empty shell casing in Rod’s revolver, indicating that he fired only once. Strewn on the floor were 34 empty 9-mm shells, meaning Nash used up at least two magazines.
One of the fatalities was Chris Lorenz Fabian. After initially ducking for cover, he was videoed getting up and trying to pull the classroom door shut. From the other side Nash purportedly kept it open while firing. Chris Lorenz was hit in the heart and lung. Breathing his last, he whispered to classmates and teachers to run for their lives.
Rod mixed with the panicked crowd, and put an arm around a smaller girl. A fireman turned him over to the responding cops. “Makukulong ba ko, makukulong ba ko?” Rod repeatedly cried. At 11 a.m. a tricycle driver-neighbor picked up Nash who was hiding at home and took him to the police station.
Sen. Kiko Pangilinan said the 15-year-old can be criminally charged under the Juvenile Justice Law that he authored. “They cannot simply be released even if minors. They must go through the process prescribed by law. A child aged 15 years old or below at the time of the crime is exempt from criminal liability, but is still mandated to be subjected to an intervention program.”
Same with suspects above 15 but below 18, “unless he/she acted with discernment, in which case such child shall be subjected to the appropriate proceedings in accordance with this Act.”
Radio-TV interviews with anguished Tacloban students, teachers and parents were heartrending. The mother of a girl in hospital ICU kept blaming herself for advising the daughter to attend school although feverish that morning. Another mother wept that she was waiting for her daughter outside the school gate, not knowing the girl was in death throes only meters away inside.
Chris Lorenz’s father was inconsolable despite avowals of his son’s heroism. A teacher of the two attackers and two of the fatalities had chills and couldn’t reenter the classroom till yesterday.
Despite counseling, they may not get over the tragedy. In the US, CBS News’ “60 Minutes” featured in 2024 the parents of some school children slain in campus shootings. Replayed last June 14, it showed them leaving the kids’ bedrooms as they were the day they died, with clothes still in hampers, beds unmade and desks littered with notes and stick-ons.
DepEd was caught unprepared by the rash of school violence. Last week, knife attacks panicked two schools in Cavite. Same with another in San Carlos City Tuesday. All DepEd could do was caution the public against speculations and to respect the privacy of minor offenders and victims.
There would be no speculating and misreporting if DepEd officials immediately come forward to discuss needed improvements in campus safety and security. Its silence shows incompetence.
Rich city halls can donate metal detectors at public school entrances. But DepEd is talking through its hat about hiring at least two security guards for each of 50,000 elementary and high schools. It can’t even fill in the shortage of 18,000 teachers archipelago-wide.
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