Newspeg: The Supreme Court in a Jan. 17 two-page minute resolution upheld the Ombudsman’s dismissal of the criminal complaint filed by former solgen Frank Chavez against former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, et al. in connection with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) fund in 2004.
Here’s the announcement of the Supreme Court at their website:
“In a two-page minute resolution dated January 17, 2013, the Supreme Court effectively upheld the Office of the Ombudsman (Ombudsman)’s dismissal of the criminal charges filed by former Solicitor General Francisco I. Chavez against former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, et al. in connection with the alleged misuse of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) funds in 2004.
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“In his Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45, Chavez, among others, sought the reversal of the assailed Ombudsman rulings approving the resolution of a Department of Justice (DOJ) Panel of Investigators that recommended the dismissal of malversation charges against Arroyo for the alleged illegal transfer of P530,382,445 in OWWA Medicare Fund to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PHIC) and of the $350,000 from the OWWA Capital Fund to several labor attachés in the Middle East during the US-Iraq crisis. (Chavez v. Arroyo, GR Nos. 203884-85, Min. Res., January 17, 2013)”
Lawyers say they’ve been pinkslipped when they get this kind of “decision”/ “resolution”– it’s usually two paragraphs, the rest of the page/ space being taken up by the title, the names of the parties, addresses, the cc’ed names again, the names of the participating justices.
A petition for review and certiorari under Rule 45 — i don’t know about you, but Rule 45 petition for review is not easy for me.
This kind of “appeal” raises only questions of law and review is not a matter of right but of “sound judicial discretion”. The following are the pertinent rules of procedure:
“Rule 45. Sec. 6. Review discretionary.—A review is not a matter of right, but of sound judicial discretion, and will be granted only when there are special and important reasons therefor. The following, while neither controlling nor fully measuring the court’s discretion, indicate the character of the reasons which will be considered:
“(a) When the court a quo has decided a question of substance, not theretofore determined by the Supreme Court, or has decided it in a way probably not in accord with law or with the applicable decisions of the Supreme Court; or
“(b) When the court a quo has so far departed from the accepted and usual course of judicial proceedings, or so far sanctioned such departure by a lower court, as to call for an exercise of the power of supervision. (4a)”
What did they talk about, jeer at, applaud, diss, like, stalk, fancy, celebrate this year when the world did not end? Here they are — the top ten most searched and most trending:
According to Yahoo Philippines at ph.news.yahoo.com/yahoo–philippines-year-in-review–who-was-the-most-searched-personality-of-2012
the following are the most searched news subjects in the Yahoo Phil search engine (hard news):
“1. Ronald Llamas. The prominent Filipino activist and the current political adviser of President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, was caught buying pirated DVD in January this year.
“2. Iggy Arroyo. Late Negros Occidental Representative Ignacio Arroyo died due to liver ailment in London in February.
“3. Renato Corona. Former Supreme Court Chief Justice was the first official to be impeached in May.
“4. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Former President and the current Pampanga Representative’s arrest, hospitalization and failed attempts to seek medication abroad made her one of the top newsmakers of the year.
“5. Jessie Robredo. The interior minister in President Aquino’s cabinet died in plane crash in August.
“6. Senator Vicente “Tito” Sotto III was accused of plagiarism during Reproductive Health Bill Debates in September.
“7. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV was accused of working for Beijing in the dispute between the Philippines and China over Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.
“8. Supreme Court chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno became one of the Top 10 newsmakers on Yahoo! for being the youngest appointed SC chief justice in September.
“9. Peace panel chair Marvic Leonen. The chief negotiator signed the framework agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in October.
“10. Juan Ponce Enrile. The senate president led the impeachment of the former Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona. “
Here, also, are the top ten overall most searched personalities in the Yahoo Network Philippines:
Top 10 search queries in the Philippines
1. Jessica Sanchez
2. NBA
3. Sarah Geronimo
4. Anne Curtis
5. American Idol
6. Angelica Panganiban
7. Marian Rivera
8. Grace Lee
9. KC Concepcion
10. Bianca Gonzalez
Yahoo Philippines places the following top ten search subjects in the U.S. in 2012:
1. Election
2. iPhone5
3. Kim Kardashian
4. Kate Upton
5. Kate Middleton
6. Whitney Houston
7. Olympics
8. Political Polls
9. Lindsay Lohan
10. Jennifer Lopez
And….the top ten most trending topics or most viral stories in the net based on Yahoo Philippines analytics are….
“1. #Amalayer: Paula Jamie Salvosa, a 23-year-old student was caught on video berating a guard on Light Railway Transit. The video as well as the student’s Twitter handle went viral online.
“2. Carabuena: Robert Carabuena, an employee of Philip Morris International physically assaulting a Metro Manila Development Authority officer was caught on video and subsequently went viral.
“3. #Sinotto: Following the plagiarism accusations involving Reproductive Health bill critic Senator Vicente Sotto, netizens coined the term “Sinotto”; the hashtag posts became immediately popular with those poking fun translating famous English quotes to Tagalog or vice versa.
“4. Claudine vs. Tulfo brothers: A brawl involving showbiz couple Raymart Santiago and Claudine Barreto and Inquirer columnist Ramon Tulfo at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s Terminal 3 became an Internet sensation.
“5. Noemi Lagman: Missing girl was reunited with her family thanks to social media’s help.
“6. Noynoying: Anti-government protesters in the Philippines found a new way to poke fun at President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. “Noynoying” which means doing nothing, was a protest against the President.
“7. Anti-epal: Social media site that became a venue for the public to share photos of public servants who’ve displayed their names or images in public places to advance their political careers.
“8. “Hero dog” Kabang:Philippine hero dog Kabang saved two young girls from being run over by a motorbike but lost her snout and upper jaw by being hit by the front wheel of the motorbike.
“9. Batangas: A Hollywood style signage in Taal Volcano of Batangas became the butt of online jokes.
“10. Zendee Rose Tenerefe: The “random girl”on You Tube lands recording contract and invited to Ellen DeGeneres show.”
What do you think? What were the crowd obsessions of 2012?
