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Habang papalapit ang November 15 deadline for substitution, sabik na sabik ang mga DDS at may halong pangamba din sapagkat walang kasiguraduhan ang pagtakbo ni Inday Sara para sa pambansang posisyon. Si Bato de la Rosa para pangulo at Bong Go para sa VP ang mga magiging pambato ng mga DDS. Kapag lagpas na ang araw ng pagpapalit, si Tatay Digong ang magpapahiwatig ng kaniyang mga manok sa pamamagitan ng pagtataas ng mga kamay nito. Umaasa tayo na kapag pinal na ang listahan ng mga kandidato ay makakausad na ang kampanya.
Most presidential and vice presidential tickets for the May 2022 national elections are still tentative because everyone is still waiting for the November 15 substitution deadline. Will Davao City Mayor and presidential daughter Inday Sara Duterte finally agree to run for higher office? Will any of the already declared presidential candidates (Pacman, Isko, BBM, Leni and Ping) slide down and run for VP instead?
From the BBM camp, the ideal running mate would be Pacman. BBM is strong in Regions 1 (Ilocos), 2 (Cagayan Valley) and NCR. Pacman is from Mindanao and has a huge following there more so if Sara Duterte remains as Davao City chief executive. Pacman also has significant drawing power among the Bisayan speaking areas of the Visayas.
Assuming that Pacquiao remains a contender for the highest office of the land, BBM may tap local kingpins in the Visayas, such as Ace Durano, former Tourism Secretary and former Congressman from vote rich Cebu. Durano is contesting the Province of Cebu gubernatorial seat in 2022 against the incumbent Gwen Garcia. Governor Garcia is the odds on favorite to win re-election. Durano may thus be amenable to be “kicked upstairs” and aspire for the vice presidency.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Reply to Tulfo column The Philippine Star October 27, 2021
This is about the article written by Mr. Ramon T. Tulfo entitled “Plan C” in his column Sentinel on Oct. 26, 2021. The article betrayed how The Philippine STAR values its credibility and integrity as one of the country’s leading sources of news and information. At face value, it’s not very hard to know that Mr. Tulfo was peddling wild conjectures, lies, intrigues and chismis in this Plan C article, which entirely was based on hearsay.Of the more than 20 Plan C paragraphs, seven were devoted to pure chismis about me, President Rodrigo Duterte and Senator Bong Go.
Let me quickly and simply break it down for you.
Chismis: My little birdies in Cebu said that Sara might just run as Bongbong’s party-mate to upset Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go, who’s running for the vice presidency.
Chismis: She also wants to unsettle her father, President Digong.
Chismis: Several times during the party, Sara expressed abhorrence over Go’s close bonding with her father, according to one of my little birdies (By little birdy I mean sources, not the other meaning. – RTT).
Chismis: Sara implied that even after getting elected senator, Bong Go continues to be “servile” – that’s not my choice of wording, but of my little birdies – to Digong.
Chismis: There’s nothing wrong with Bong being a servant to her father, Sara implied; it’s just that she and her siblings can’t go directly to the President without passing through him.
Chismis: As we all know, there’s bad blood between daughter and father.
Chismis: Sara hasn’t gotten over her parents’ separation; she sides with her mother, Elizabeth Zimmerman, a Filipino-German who’s a former Philippine Airlines flight attendant.
The rest of the article was either unimportant, given or another load of hogwash and untruths that we’ve all heard before.
Plan C was stitched by someone that no self-respecting individual – much more a member of the media – should find inspiration from.
Mr. Tulfo’s article should be found not in any of the main pages of The Philippine STAR – unless The Philippine STAR is a rumormonger publication or a tabloid that serves people like Mr. Tulfo.
This brings me to inevitably question the vetting process that your newspaper observes and follows before publishing articles.
Lastly, as the object of Mr. Tulfo’s journalistic irresponsibility, courtesy of The Philippine STAR, I deserve an apology – however, I am not expecting.
Daghang salamat. – Mayor Inday Sara Duterte, Davao City
Nanggagalaite ang mga DILAWAN tuwing may larawan si Pangulong Duterte sa mga proyekto ng DPWH at DOTr sapagkat pawang mga naumpisahan daw ang mga ito sa panahon ni dating P-Noy RIP at pinagpatuloy lang sa pagpasok ng Pamahalaang Duterte. Sabi naman ng mga DDS na marami sa mga plano ni P-Noy ay problemado sa simula (kagaya ng Skyway 3) at naresolba lamang ang mga isyu (kagaya ng right of way) sa tulong na ng kasalukuyang administrasyon kaya doon palang umusad at natapos ang mga airport, tulay at highway.
Isang proyektong mariing tinutulan at patuloy na tinunutulan ng mga DILAWAN ay ang Manila Bay white sand beach sapagkat hindi raw dapat inatupag ang pagpapaganda ng lugar sa gitna ng pandemya. Dapat daw ay ayuda sa mga nagugutom at trabaho para sa mga nawalan ng hanapbuhay dahil sa COVID 19 ang pinaglaanan ng pera.
Wala pa ang pandaigdigang problema sa kalusugan, ang Boracay rehabilitation ay isinagawa sapagkat malaki ang problema ukol sa sewage (dumi ng tao) na nailagay na sa alanganin ang mga lumalangoy sa beach. Todo ngawa si VP Leni sapagkat napilitan sarhan ang tourist spot ng ilang buwan para maipatupad ang paglilinis, paggawa ng mga poso negro at ligtas na pagtapon sa dagat.
Ngayong ang mga DILAWAN ay nagdaos ng pagkilos pulitikal sa Boracay para pasikatin si Lugaw Robredo at batikusin si Tatay Digong hindi na naalala ng mga walang utang na loob na ang pagpapaganda ng Boracay ay dahil sa ginawa ng Pamahalaang Duterte. So, sino na ang CREDIT GRABBER ngayon?
Let us compare two beach events. One was in Boracay, the internationally acclaimed vacation Paradise. Leni Robredo supporters staged a photo session comparable to a television production. Huge PINK banners with people spread out for maximum cinematic effect. Needless to say that the Boracay rehabilitation was through the initiative of the Duterte Administration. A similar spectacle also happened in the Manila Bay dolomite beach, a collection of people now regularly visiting the controversial improvement project. With the pandemic restrictions slowly being eased, crowds are now the usual fare along the Roxas Boulevard strip famous for its stunning sunsets. The Manila Bay white sand curious folks are spontaneous and may have to wait in long lines just to be allowed to enter. Many are even turned away planning to return on another day.
While the Boracay extravaganza was obviously political (supporting a presidential candidate), the Manila Bay gatherings have a subtle political undertone. DILAWANS, as the Liberal Party and their underlings are called, will not be caught visiting the beach front that they have consistently and persistently branded as an inappropriate undertaking at a time of an ongoing pandemic. It goes without saying that the Manila Bay dolomite beach visitors are appreciative and supportive of the national government initiated project.
2021 FIG (International Gymnastics Federation) Artistic World Gymnastics Championships
GOLD medal in men’s vault
SILVER medal in parallel bars
Yulo won a GOLD medal in the 2019 Championships and was thus the defending champion in the floor exercise event but he failed to land in the medal standings this year but won in two other events (above) instead.
At the 2020 Summer Olympics, Yulo was eliminated in the floor exercise preliminaries. In the vault event, he made it to the finals but fell shy of a medal finish.
Today, Vice Ganda launches his online program. While it has been said that he has his own network, it is not of the free TV type. In fact, it is due to the loss of the ABS CBN franchise that Vice Ganda is venturing out on his own. While detractors point to this move as turning his back on his mother company that brought him fame and fortune, Vice has countered that his action would preserve the jobs of writers, cameramen, production staff and many others.
Left unspoken are the implications and repercussions of an independent business venture away from the Kapamilya universe. On one hand, the creative aspect would be more relaxed since the shows will not fall under the supervision of the government regulatory agency, MTRCB. Secondly, there is news that stars of rival GMA7 may be invited to grace his shows since, technically, ABS CBN and not Vice Ganda is the Kapuso competitor.
Vice Ganda, Coco Martin, Angel Locsin, Sarah Geronimo, Anne Curtis and Kim Chiu are the top money making stars and celebrities in the Kapamilya entertainment scene with musical shows, telenovelas and movies raking in the money and dominating tv ratings and blockbuster movie receipts. Second liners are Nadine Lustre, Maja Salvador, Kathryn Bernando, Daniel Padilla, Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil. Noli De Castro and Ted Failon are the most prominent names in the news and public affairs department.
With ABS CBN shedding programs and letting go of people, there will be a mad rush to jump ship to GMA7 and TV5. A transfer to a competing station would probably mean a pay cut but it will be employment nonetheless. The bold and the daring may try to go it alone or with a few confederates in the opportunities opened up by the internet (Facebook live streaming, You Tube and webcasts). The stars who can generate the greatest number of viewers would be in the best position to succeed on their own, outside of the free tv field of competition. Vice Ganda is on top of the ABS CBN pyramid and he will triumph.
On the ABS CBN side of the equation, loss of advertising revenues, bank loans and declining value of their shares of stock plus the payment of separation fees, retirement benefits and expenses incurred in maintaining money losing programs and departments are detrimental to their financial health. While they may succeed in creating a lean and mean organization, in the short term their problem would be how to break even on a daily or monthly basis. In business, significant liquidity can be achieved by getting the existing stockholders to put in more money or through outside investors. Be that as it may, Kapamilya is in crisis. Traditionally, ABS CBN would have relied on their pool of stars to bail them out but in this case, time is not on the side of Kapamilya because in the individual fight for survival, the celebrities may transfer to GMA 7 and TV5 or strike gold on their own. The fact that there is still no existing Philippine model of a phenomenally successful entertainment empire in the internet only means that it is too difficult to do or not too many people have tried it. Vice Ganda is the pioneer and his huge popularity will bring him to the promised land. Once he has charted the path on the mechanics of putting up an online network, others will follow. If and when ABS CBN can dig itself out of its black hole, many of its top celebrities may not be with them anymore so those that have no choice but to stick it out with Kapamilya will become their new superstars.
Months before Angel Locsin’s confirmed transfer to ABS-CBN, GMA-7 already had a gut feel that something was amiss though this was doused off several times by Angel and her camp.
“Twice we asked Angel if she was talking to ABS-CBN and twice she replied that she was not,” revealed GMA-7’s SVP for Entertainment TV Wilma Galvante to Showbiz Central co-host Pia Guanio in an interview.
According to Ms. Galvante, rumors that Angel and her manager Becky Aguila were already negotiating with ABS-CBN already buzzed inside GMA’s compound, prompting a network executive to personally visit the young actress on the set of Asian Treasures to confirm the news.
“‘Yung first instance was in June when Joey Abacan of GMA Films went to the set of Asian Treasures. Dito tinanong niya si Angel, ‘Naririnig namin na nakikipag-usap kayo sa kabila.’ Angel vehemently denied this and she said, ‘Papansinin ba nila ako doon? Hindi kami lilipat.’ So Joey took her word for it and he relayed that to us,” Ms. Galvante recalled calmly.
A formal meeting was then called last July 3 at the Makati Shangri-la, attended by some of the network’s bigwigs and Angel’s team.
Present in the late night meeting were Angel along with manager Becky Aguila, lawyer Joji Antonio and GMA’s Joey Abacan, Redgie Acuña-Magno, Annette Gozon, and Wilma Galvante herself.
“Again in that meeting, we asked both of them, Becky and Angel, ‘Nababalitaan namin, marami kaming naririnig na nakikipag-usap na kayo sa kabila. Totoo ba ‘yan?’ Tapos ang sagot ni Becky, ‘Saan mo narinig ‘yan? Sinong nagsabi sa ‘yo niyan? Hindi ‘yan totoo. Walang katotohanan diyan.’ And Angel even said, ‘Naku, hindi po ako lilipat. Mahal na mahal ko po kayo hindi ko kayo iiwan. Gusto ko lang magpahinga. Gusto ko lang magbakasyon. Pagbalik na pagbalik ko, kayo naman ‘yung una kong kakausapin,'” Ms. Galvante narrated.
The network executive said that they repeatedly offered Angel a new contract after her co-management contract expired with GMA-7 last March 31.
“Even before her contract expired,” stressed Galvante on GMA-7’s offer for a new contract with Angel.
𝙏𝘼𝙆𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝘼 𝘽𝙍𝙀𝘼𝙆. In Galvante’s recollection of her meeting with Becky and Angel’s father, Mr. Angel Colmenares, the two made known that Angel wanted to take a break first after wrapping up Asian Treasures and in the process turned down the lead role for the local remake of the Mexican telenovela Marimar.
Ms. Galvante recalled Angel’s supposed plans as presented by her manager and father: “She needed to go to the States for the premiere of her movie, Angels, and then she had to go to London for a six-week fashion design course—they told us six weeks. After that she wanted to travel, see the world, take a break [and] rest. Pagbalik niya, ang gagawin niya muna, ang kailangang gawin niya, ‘yung kanyang mga commercials and then the movie and then she want to attend to the business offers that are coming her way daw. In-explain nung father na hindi naman ‘yan nangyayari. Nangyayari ‘yan ngayon na she’s on top of her career, so she also wants to take advantage of it. We understood it. I took their word for it.”
Wilma reiterated that she, and in behalf of the network, accepted all these arrangements with the understanding that Angel would sit down with GMA to discuss working anew once all plans were accomplished.
𝙎𝙃𝙊𝘾𝙆𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙈𝙊𝙑𝙀.But as it turned out, GMA-7 was shocked to discover that Angel had already sealed a deal with ABS-CBN just as the Kapuso executives were about to receive a formal letter from Angel’s camp informing them about her move to the Lopez-owned network.
“We found out on the same day that they appeared on an interview on TV Patrol. So, that interview was pre-taped obviously and it was like the other Friday only a few hours before Becky and Mr. Colminares (Angel’s father) send us a letter signed by both of them. The letter was sent to me, to Annette Gozon, and to Atty. [Felipe] Gozon on the same afternoon,” she narrated.
Galvante also contested the issue that Angel felt neglected for GMA’s lack of support for her movie, Angels.
As revealed by the network executive, GMA-7 didn’t charge Angels’ trailer air time in the station and even bought the TV rights of the movie for a staggering P3 million, with Becky cashing the P1.5 million as she told GMA-7 that she was already strapped for production money.
“Libre ‘yon,” she casually pointed out. “In fact, ‘yung movie n’ya na Angels, binili ng GMA ang TV rights. Ang ibig sabihin ng binili ‘yung TV rights, ‘yong movie mo later on in the future, we will air it on TV. Binili ‘yon ng P3 million, so kami ang nagbayad sa kanila. GMA ang nagbayad sa kanila.”
𝙍𝙄𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙍𝘿 𝙂𝙐𝙏𝙄𝙀𝙍𝙍𝙀𝙕. There’s also no point in comparing Angel’s income with former screen partner Richard Gutierrez, as the latter has more assignments in the first place. Ms. Galvante explained:
“Here are the facts. From 2006 to mid-2007, Angel Locsin made over 60 million pesos from her TV shows and mostly from endorsement contracts closed by the GMA Artist Center. ‘Yung para i-compare niya ‘yung kinikita niya kay Richard Gutierrez is not even fair. You know why? For TV, malaki talaga ang kikitain ni Richard because he’s doing three shows. The guy is taping soap three to four times a week. He will do Nuts Entertainment. He will do SOP. He works hard for his money. He should really earn more than Angel for the TV show kasi soap lang si Angel, e. Hindi mo naman siya [Angel] malagay sa SOP kasi she cannot sing, ayaw niya. ‘Yung dancing wala, ‘tsaka pagod na siya. So soap lang talaga. We took care of her na ilagay mo lang siya kung saan talaga magsa-shine ‘yung talent n’ya
𝘾𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙏𝙀𝙎𝙔.The top management, according to Ms. Galvante, went through all the negotiations in good faith and hoped that Angel and her manager had at least showed some courtesy in dealing with the entire issue.
“A grateful person would have negotiated with us in good faith and treated us fairly, and with honesty, basic honesty. She and her manager unfortunately did not.”
Despite the messy split-up, she relayed that GMA still wishes Angel all the best when it comes to her career and personal life and hopes she’s at peace with her decision.
Dala ng ABS CBN franchise bill denial, nabigyan na ng katarungan sina Mel and Jay sapagkat matapos silang umalis sa Channel 2 ay sinampahan sila ng kaso na nakarating hangang Korte Suprema. Ang pinagmulan ng problema ay nuong lumabas si Mel sa isang TV commercial kung saan sabi ng Kapamilya network ay dapat humingi muna siya ng pahintulot. Nasuspindi si Mel sa trabaho ng 3 buwan pero matapos ito nagsumite naman siya ng indefinite leave of absence. Si Jay ay nagbitiw sa trabaho. Nuong nakalipat na sila sa GMA 7 kinasuhan sina Mel and Jay sa salang sinulot sila ng Kapuso. Sabi ng hukuman na malaya na silang makakapagtrabaho sa ibang kumpanya sapagkat wala na sila sa Kapamilya.
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ABS-CBN case vs Mel and Jay dismissed
ABS-CBN News
Posted at Mar 08 2011
MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court has denied an appeal filed by ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. over a Court of Appeals (CA) ruling that found nothing wrong in the transfer of Mel Tiangco and Jay Sonza to GMA-7.
The High Court’s 2nd division, in a December 13, 2010 resolution, denied the appeal “for failure to sufficiently show any reversible error in the assailed judgment to warrant the exercise of this Court’s (Supreme Court) discretionary appellate decision.”
The CA had affirmed a lower court ruling which did not find proof that GMA-7 poached the 2 talents from ABS-CBN because Tiangco and Sonza had already left the company when they moved to the other broadcast firm.
Tiangco and Sonza hosted ABS-CBN show “Mel & Jay.” Tiangco was suspended for 3 months from appearing on TV Patrol after she appeared in a television commercial without prior approval from ABS-CBN.
She then took an indefinite leave of absence from “Mel & Jay” while Sonza resigned.
ABS-CBN later filed a case against the 2 before the Quezon City Regional Trial Court over a non-competitive clause in their contract that banned them from working in other TV or radio station for a year after they left ABS-CBN.
The Supreme Court, while denying ABS-CBN’s appeal, ordered Sonza to pay a P2,000 fine in connection with the case for his failure to comply with an April 2004 resolution on a show-cause order.
ABS-CBN management has yet to comment on the ruling.
By William B. Depasupil and Divina Nova Joy Dela Cruz
The Manila Times
The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) on Wednesday disputed the claim of ABS-CBN Corp. that it has been found compliant with labor laws.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello lll blasted the claim of the network’s lawyers and officials during a hearing at the House of Representatives that the Labor department found the network compliant with labor laws.
“The facts bear us out. Our labor inspectors found violations of laws and standards by ABS-CBN. And on account of those findings, the company took steps to correct those violations,” DoLE said in a statement.
“It is therefore patently misleading to attribute to us the claim that ABS-CBN is a compliant company. In fact, there are 67 pending cases against the company in the NLRC and the various courts,” it added, referring to the National Labor Relations Commission.
Bello said ABS-CBN misrepresented its position to deceive the lawmakers in its bid to gain congressional approval for a new franchise.
“We will not let this pass,” DoLE said as it warned the broadcast firm’s counsels against wrongfully presenting policy issuances of the department to the advantage of their client.
The Labor department pointed out that the cited rule governing the employee-employer relationship in the broadcast industry 40 years ago is no longer aligned with the provisions of the Labor Code.
“We also find most detestable the deliberate manner by which Policy Instruction No. 40 issued by the then Labor Minister in 1979 was volunteered to the House committee as the basis for the work arrangement in ABS-CBN. Misleading as it is, it conveniently leaves the impression that the policy was that of current Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 3rd,” the department said.
The National Telecommunications Commission on Tuesday dealt ABS-CBN another big blow when it issued cease and desist orders (CDOs) against the firm’s subsidiaries Sky Cable Corp, and its TV Plus channels, claiming that they were covered by a CDO it issued on May 5, 2020.
On Wednesday, an official of the network denied allegations that it violated tax laws.
“ABS-CBN has paid its proper taxes every year contrary to the allegations, there has not been a single year where ABS-CBN has paid zero taxes,” the network’s chief financial officer, Ricardo Tan, told lawmakers during the hearing of its franchise application.
Tan said in 2018, ABS-CBN, as a group, paid a total of P5.2 billion in various taxes, including P465 million in income taxes.
Bureau of Internal Revenue Assistant Commissioner Manuel Mapoy confirmed that the network paid its taxes for the past three years.
Tan added that the company has contributed largely to the Philippine economy with a total of P71.5 billion in taxes paid from 2003 to 2019.
Meanwhile, Buhay party-list Rep. Jose “Lito” Atienza Jr. urged the leadership of the Committee on Legislative Franchises not to waste time and money and act on the application of ABS-CBN for a franchise.
“We should act on this issue now. We have spent so much time on this, this is the ninth hearing and we have exhaustively tackled all the relevant issues,” Atienza said.
“We have heard all the arguments and have allowed all those against ABS-CBN to air their side on several matters, including Constitutional issues. The questions have been nothing less than repetitious, and prosecutorial in tone. This prompts us to ask — is this a congressional hearing or a prosecutorial procedure? The bias is obvious and up to this point in time, they have not proven anything. How long will we make them wait? These are not normal times we are in, and the sooner we act on this, the better for everyone,” he added.
Atienza said ABS-CBN “has been a steady and reliable source of information.”
“Shutting down the network’s operations would deprive millions of our kababayan of access to vital information,” he said.
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