Loonie, two others indicted on drug charges; no bail recommended

Rap star Loonie, real name Marlon Peroramas, and two others have been indicted in connection with their alleged involvement in drug dealing.

The Makati City Prosecutor's Office recommended that no bail be set for the provisional liberty of the rapper, his sister Idyll Liza Peroramas and David Rizon.

The complaint for violation of Section 5 of the Republic Act 9165 against their fellow respondents Ivan Agustin and Albert Alvarez has been set for preliminary investigation.

Agustin was indicted for violation of Section 13 and a P3,000 bail was set.

Alvarez, the driver of the group when they arrested, was ordered released from custody of the law until he is detained for other unlawful causes.

Loonie, his sister, Rizon, Agustin, and Alvarez were nabbed in a buy-bust operation at the parking basement of a hotel in Barangay Poblacion, Makati last week.

Police seized 15 sachets of suspected kush or high-grade marijuana from the group.

Loonie and his fellow drug suspects has petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus, which the Makati Regional Trial Court dismissed on Monday. —Joahna Casilao/NB, GMA News

The LOST TOMB of CALLAO | The Story of Homo Luzonensis

For three decades or so, Armand Mijares has been climbing mountains and exploring caves, initially as an anthropologist studying the culture of indigenous groups, and later as an archaeologist searching for clues about the past.

With the success of his latest discovery, one can consider him the Philippines’ very own Indiana Jones –minus the death-defying stunts and golden treasures.

He even has the classic Indiana Jones theme song as a ring tone to boot.

Inside his office at the University of the Philippines (UP) are hundreds of knick knacks and curiosities, including two replicas of hominid skulls and a conspicuous yellow briefcase. Locked inside that briefcase are his latest treasures – 13 teeth and bones from a new species of ancient humans.

Mijares and his colleagues from around the world concluded that the fossilized remains make up an never-before-seen hominin species, which they now call Homo luzonensis based on the Philippines’ largest island Luzon.

“The discovery situates the Philippines as a major area of human evolutionary research,” Mijares said during a press conference last April 11 when he announced the findings.

He also believes that the discovery will result in many Philippine textbooks being revised to include theHomo luzonensis, not only as a new species, but as the oldest known ancient human in the archipelago.

Game-changing

As an archaeologist, Mijares always believed that only Homo sapiens – the species of the modern man – had been present in the Philippines, especially since most of the country was not connected to mainland Asia at a time when ancient humans were migrating out of Africa.

But when in 2007 he found a foot bone that did not fit in the description of Homo sapiens and other ancient human species, he started questioning his own beliefs.

“I needed to shift my own paradigm. I was on the side then…I was a believer that only Homo sapiens arrived in Luzon,” he said.

Read more at abs.cbn

Immigration says 'drug queen' already out of PHL

The Bureau of Immigration confirmed on Wednesday that a barangay captain who allegedly bought seized illegal drugs from rogue policemen has left the country.

Guia Gomez Castro, an alleged "drug queen," was "recently" allowed to leave the Philippines because she had "no derogatory records," BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval said.

The Philippine National Police said it is continuing a case buildup against Castro to see if the evidence would warrant the filing of charges.

The Manila Police District was the first to identify the alleged drug queen, but the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency had initially disclosed her operations.

The anti-drug agency claimed that her activities were being protected by policemen who resell illegal drugs that were confiscated during legitimate operations.

National Capital Region Police Office chief Police Major General Guillermo Eleazar said 16 police officers were connected to Castro's alleged drug operations. —Nicole-Anne C. Lagrimas/KBK, GMA News

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Another PMA cadet rushed to hospital

Editor’s Note: This article tackles subject matter that young and some sensitive readers may find unsettling. Microsoft News advises to read this story with caution and proper guidance.

Another cadet of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) was rushed to the hospital on Monday, Armed Forces spokesman Marine Brigadier General Edgard Arevalo confirmed on Tuesday.

Arevalo, however, refused to identify the cadet, who also bore signs of maltreatment.

Arevalo said the cadet was brought to V. Luna Hospital in Quezon City.

An investigation into the matter is ongoing.

Last Wednesday, cadet Darwin Dormitorio was found unconscious in his room and rushed to the hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. 

The PMA later said that he died of injuries from hazing. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Lieutenant General Ronnie Evangelista resigned as PMA superintendent. Brigadier General Bartolome Bacarro, the commandant of cadets, also resigned.

The PMA has already identified several cadets and officers involved in Dormitorio's hazing. — BM/JST, GMA News

MMDA: Makati-Cubao takes 40 minutes

MANILA, Philippines — President Duterte’s promise it would take only five minutes from Makati City to Cubao, Quezon City by December is just not doable, a Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) official said yesterday.

Bong Nebrija, EDSA traffic czar, said Duterte’s vision is far from at least 40 minutes it takes to travel from Makati to Cubao. “With the current setup, no,” Nebrija told The STAR.

“With the volume of vehicles and failure to get emergency powers, how can you drastically reduce the travel time on EDSA from more than one hour to five minutes?” he added.

Nebrija said with a court order stopping the implementation of the provincial bus ban, they are looking for new traffic reduction measures.

Private motorists travel at 19.3 kilometers per hour, equivalent to a travel time of one hour and 11 minutes, while buses travel at 12 kph or take two hours to travel from Roxas Boulevard in Pasay to Monumento, Caloocan City, according to Nebrija.

Citing data from the MMDA’s traffic engineering unit, Nebrija said they recorded an average of 405,000 vehicles going through EDSA per day in August this year and 410,000 vehicles per day in September alone.

The MMDA recorded an average of 402,000 vehicles on Dec. 19, 2018. Nebrija said it was the highest number of vehicles recorded last year, less than a week before Christmas Day.

The number of vehicles passing through EDSA is expected to increase by December, Nebrija said.

He said coordinating with the police Highway Patrol Group to enforce discipline among motorists is among the MMDA’s efforts to address the Christmas traffic problem.

Source: https://www.philstar.com/