We will not surrender our freedomsToday, Independence Day, we renew our pledge to serve the people, to continue speaking truth to power, and to guard and defend freedom of the press and of expression from all threats.Read More Covering the PandemicRead more Covering the CoViD-19 Pandemic PWDs in media: Overlooked and left out LIKE MANY poor Filipinos, persons with disabilities (PWD) are among the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. They, like everyone else, have suffered the brunt of the inefficiency and lack of resources of the government’s response to the health crisis. CMFR cheers Rappler and Philstar.com for their focus on... Criminalizing criticism: More hardships for suffering public THE INHUMANE treatment of people violating quarantine protocols has exposed the Philippine National Police (PNP) as an agency without heart. (See monitor: “Editorials assail abuses during lockdown”) The administration has shown another aspect of its heartlessness, wielding the law to silence criticism and with uniformed officials at the forefront... Mass testing as policy: Still no plan in sight AS THE government eases restrictions to start up the economy, cash-strapped Filipinos are eager to return to work. On May 16, modified quarantine conditions were set for some areas, and some 14 million people across the country braved the risk of COVID-19 by leaving their homes to earn a... Inquirer blasts DILG drive for charter change amid pandemic PUBLIC OPINION polls have again and again found that federalism and Charter change (Cha-cha) are not priority issues for Filipinos. The shift to federalism was among President Rodrigo Duterte’s promised changes when he took office in 2016, but the bills filed by his allies that tried to do that... Media report ECQ shift to modified quarantine as just another “carmageddon” AFTER TWO months of lockdown, the government decided to ease quarantine restrictions in some areas. Modified levels were announced for different jurisdictions from May 16 to May 31. Modified levels of the ECQ included the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified general community quarantine... Have we “flattened the curve?” IN APRIL, as the clamor for COVID-19 mass testing intensified, the government scrambled to scale up its testing capacity. On the 30th, during the regular press briefing of the DOH, Undersecretary and spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire admitted that the DOH had failed to meet its target of conducting 8,000... GMA-7 airs one-sided interview against ABS-CBN ABS-CBN’s 25-year franchise expired on May 4, 2020. The House of Representatives had not decided on the network’s application for its franchise renewal. The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) issued a cease and desist order against ABS-CBN late in the afternoon of May 5. The network aired its evening newscast... ABS-CBN signs off: Politicians dominate coverage, public interest sidelined IN THE hands of members of the House of Representatives of Congress, franchise power has been captured by political forces. Without Congressional action on its renewal, the 25-year franchise of ABS-CBN, the country’s largest media network, expired on May 4, 2020. Because there was no valid franchise, the National... Why the special treatment for POGOs? WHEN THE government declared the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) for Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon, many businesses including the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGO), were forced to suspend activities. Apparently, however, the proponents of POGOs won’t let those enterprises sit idly for long. And as it have... Chinese buildup amid COVID-19: Little protest from government and media THE PHILIPPINE government did not seem to be aware that China had constructed two research facilities in Kagitingan and Zamora Reefs in the West Philippine Sea, and had established two administrative districts.The first one is in the Spratly Islands, which include the Kalayaan Island Group and are declared Philippine... « Previous1…6667686970…203Next »
