news The Manila Times FRIDAY BY EFREN L. DANAO SENIOR REPORTER


ENATE President Juan Ponce Enrile said Thursday that there would be no revival of the ethics case against Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. in the Fifteenth Congress.


S


This statement is expected to make some Villar supporters consider Enrile as an alternative candidate for Senate President with neither Villar nor Sen. Francis Pangilinan having difficulty getting the majority. “The case [against Villar] was filed in the Fourteenth Congress and it was heard in the Fourteenth Con- gress. Six members of that Congress


are no longer with the Senate, while we have six new members,” he said. Enrile was chairman of the Senate Committee of the Whole that heard the charges that Villar and his realty company allegedly benefited from the C-5 road extension project. This was raised as an issue against Villar in the recent campaign for president. Enrile had refused to support


DepEd prepares schools for A(H1N1) onslaught


WITH the onset of the rainy season, the Department of Education (DepEd) Thursday has ordered all school officials to take necessary measures to prevent the possible occurrence or pandemic of Influ- enza A(H1N1). “We call on the parents, students,


teachers, and school officials to be mindful of their health, take extra precaution and to be watchful for any symptoms pointing to A [H1N1],” Education Secretary Brother Armin Luistro said. The DepEd Memorandum 315 series of 2010 has lined up precau- tionary measures to prepare schools in the event of a breakout. Luistro also instructed schools to maintain sanitation in school premises and directed school health officials to conduct a campaign on information dissemination to edu- cate students and the school com- munity on the virus and its preven- tion measures.


The Education chief is firm on


avoiding the suspension of classes used to contain the spread of the virus. “The safety of the students, officials and personnel should al- ways be on top of our concerns. This year, we should not let it stop


our school operations, instead, we should be ready to do our part in controlling the spread of the virus,” Luistro stressed.


All school officials are also in- structed to follow the Preventive Alert System in Schools (PASS)— a guideline issued by the Educa- tion department providing a sys- tematic relay of information on the child, or teacher’s state of health to medical personnel or agencies in the locality. Under PASS, students are tasked to observe other students and to re- port if anyone among them is bear- ing symptoms of cold, cough or fe- ver. Principals are ordered to notify the family of the sick child and to consult to the nearest health center or officer in the community. School heads are also directed to coordinate with barangay health workers and municipal health offic- ers for updates in possible occur- rences of infectious diseases in the area and to conduct and maintain a daily monitoring of the children and personnel’s health status. “With everyone’s support, we can make our schools a safe environ- ment for learning,” Luistro said. MARIA NIKKA U. GARRIGA


Villar’s bid for to head the Senate because of the C-5 issue. However, he said he had nothing personal against Villar and that he was will- ing to talk with him.


This conciliatory talk could ease the concern of some Villar support- ers that the C-5 issue would again be revived. The Fourteenth Congress adjourned without adopting the committee report against Villar. The support of Villar’s supporters, along with those of Pangilinan and the uncommitted between the two would make Enrile’s stature as alter- native candidate more prominent. Enrile said he had no direct talks with supporters of Villar but he was told somebody had already done so


A 3


July 23, 2010 Case against Villar to be archived–Enrile


for the possible shifting of their votes to him. He said it was possi- ble that some members of the group who had voted for him be- fore might do so again. Sen. Pia Cayetano, one of Villar’s supporters, said she was not aware of any meeting of the pro-Villar group to discuss this latest development. She said she would not join the majority if the consensus is not to her liking. Enrile revealed that some party mates of Pangilinan at the Liberal Party saw him at the Makati Med on Tuesday and told him Pangilinan was having a hard time mustering the re- quired 13 votes. They asked him to continue as Senate President. He re- fused to identify his callers, however.


Giant flag “They said that some independ-


ents, Liberals and Nacionalistas will vote for me,” he added.


He said he told them that he


would not be going around solicit- ing support and entering into a bar- gaining agreement with anyone. Enrile was among the signatories of a resolution endorsing the can- didacy of Pangilinan. Another sig- natory was Sen. Antonio Trillanes 4th who has been detained at Camp Crame on charges of leading a coup d’etat. Pangilinan said 11 had al- ready pledged their vote for him Enrile, however, said some of them told him their support for Pangilinan is now off because they could not get the majority.


“They said a Senate President should be elected on July 26 or no- body will lead the Senate at the State of the Nation Address,” he said. Pangilinan, however, appeared to


have been unaffected by talks of his supporter’s shifting their commit- ment to Enrile. He said he would continue to pursue the post “to push for genuine change” and thanked Enrile for his “continuing commit- ment to support our bid.” He also shrugged off fears of an impasse in the race for Senate President. “We will definitely have a Senate President come July 26 and we will work to ensure that this is achieved,” he said in a statement.


Lawmaker wants ATMs for blind


A LAWMAKER is pushing for the early passage of a bill that would give visually impaired people ac- cess to Automated Teller Machines or ATMs in the country. The House Bill 221, known as


PHOTO BY RUY MARTINEZ


Maintenance pesonnel of the House of Representatives fix the giant flag inside the Congress Plenary Hall in preparation of President Benigno Aquino 3rd’s State of the Nation Address on Monday.


MMDA CHAIRMAN INOCENTES READY TO GO BACK TO PRIVATE LIFE


CHAIRMAN Oscar Inocentes of the Metropolitan Manila Development Au- thority (MMDA) on Thursday said that he is just waiting for his replacement and ready to go back to private life. Inocentes made the disclosure during a chance interview saying that he expects to be replaced anytime soon because he is a presidential appointee of the past administration. “I am prepared to be replaced for


I know that this position is not per- manent. I had prepared for this sce- nario,” Incoentes said. But he said that he wants to lobby to his successor to continue his pet project of giving MMDA employees a chance to own a house in the future. Weeks after he assumed office on


November 25, Inocentes claimed that he was convinced by MMDA employees to look for a place where


they can build a community through a housing project. “I have tapped 63 hectares of land in Carmona, Cavite to be the site of MMDA housing project and I have already started asking proposals from Creba social housing, an as- sociation of private land develop- ers,” he explained.


The targetted land is presently an abandoned landfill, which was bought


by then Metro Manila Council Gover- nor Imelda Marcos as dumpsite for the huge garbage of Metro Manila. He said, since the land is no longer a landfill, he feels that this could be the perfect site to build the dream housing project of MMDA employees. The chairman also said that his dream is to convert this land into a complete community, which can be a model in the future—complete


with amenities such as chapel, clin- ics, cooperative and market. “This is my social concern to


MMDA employees and if my succes- sor will give a chance to this project, he can change the lives of many or- dinary government employees whose dream is to have their own house and stop the ‘bleeding’ from house rental,” Inocentes pointed out. SAMMY MARTIN


Son of Martin Nievera, Ateneo students top MYX Video Jock search BY SHYLYNNE D. CASTILLO REPORTER


AMONG the 12 talented aspirants of the MYX VJ (Video Jock) Search 2010, Julz Savard, Ton Vergel de Dios and Robin Nievera were chosen as the freshest faces of the popular music channel in the country, held Wednes- day at the Music Hall of SM Mall of Asia. The dream to be- come part of the MYX family together with video jocks Luis Man- zano, Iya Villania, Nikki Gil, Robi Domingo, Bianca Roque, Chino Lui-Pio, Janine Ramirez and Nel Gomez was made more exciting and breathtaking because of the intensive challenges.


MYX Channel Head Andre Allan


Alvarez said he is looking forward over the fresh and unique things that the winners will bring to the channel. “The three make a good combination.


»feature


They have very distinct personalities and different types of sense of humor. But they’re all musically inclined.” Savard, 18-year-old Creative Writing student from the Ateneo de Manila University said, “I’m really so happy! I think the public voted for me be- cause they just like the true me. Now that I’m on MYX, they can expect a lot of laughter, a lot of joy, and a lot of smiles to all the MYX viewers.”


As for de Dios, 21-


year-old Communication student who is also from the Ateneo, he believes that he can contribute and support MYX by showing people that music is a diverse form of art. “This is something I really want. I’ve been a fan of MYX since I was knee-high. And now that I’m offi- cially part of it, I’m just so thank- ful and excited. Now that I’m here, I’m gonna bring more attitude and


more rock ‘n roll in MYX!” And for Nievera, 21-year-old son of music royalties Martin Nievera and Pops Fernandez who is into mu- sic production in De La Salle Col- lege of Saint Benilde, he shared that he has always been fascinated to be- come a MYX VJ. “I’m gonna give whatever I can give, which is my ran- domness and my dad’s wit and my mom’s quick mouth whatever that means. To my supporters, thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me.” Meanwhile, concert king Martin


Nievera is very much pleased with his son’s achievement. “Having my son as one of the MYX VJs is a big compliment for me. The youth needs to know that dreams do come true and Robin is a perfect example of that,” Nievera said in an interview with The Manila Times. The audience was entertained with live performances from Sponge


the “ATM Access for the Visually Impaired Act,” calls for provid- ing blind persons access to ATMs through an auditory system of con- veying and receiving information. “By giving them access to this technology, not only their financial transactions but their integration into mainstream society be greatly facilitated,” Rep. Lorenzo Tañada 3rd of Quezon, author of the bill, said in a statement. If passed, Tañada said, the bill should require all banking institu- tions in the country to provide ATM machines, which shall be equipped to conduct transactions by means of an Audio Transmission System. The bill, he said, also provides


for ATM machines installed prior to the effectivity of this proposed act that will need an upgrade or be scheduled for replacement— shall be upgraded or replaced subsequently. Tañada said differently abled persons should, as much as possi- ble, be afforded opportunities to overcome their disability and re- main fully integrated with society. He added that one of the con-


crete ways in which this can be done is by allowing the impaired people to manage their finances and conduct financial transactions without external aid. “Making ATMs accessible to the visually impaired sends a strong message that any physical disabil- ity should not be a bar to the en- joyment of such modern conven- iences as these can easily be adapted to their special needs,” Tañada said.


CRIS G. ODRONIA


Malacañang accepts Libanan resignation


Cola, Tanya Markova and Pilipinas Got Talent finalist Markki Stroem. Also gracing the event were Pinoy Big Brother Teen Clash housemates.


■ MYX VJ Search 2010 winners Roberto Martin “Robin” Nievera, Juliann “Julz” Savard and Jose Antonio “Ton” Vergel de Dios. PHOTO BY MARIA NIKKA U. GARRIGA


Brother-in-law wants to claim inheritance while parents still alive Dear PAO,


I need to know if given that the parents are still alive, do their chil- dren have the right to claim their share in the properties of the par- ents? My brother-in-law is claim- ing that he has a right to his par- ents’ properties and he is claiming his share in the said property now. Thank you very much for your


advice. Lito


Dear Lito, Before we delve into your query, it is imperative upon us to discuss the different concepts pertinent to your question.


Children, whether legitimate, or


illegitimate, are considered compul- sory heirs of their parents in accord- ance with Article 887 of the New Civil Code, which provides, to wit: Art. 887. The following are com-


pulsory heirs:


1. Legitimate children and de- scendants, with respect to their le- gitimate parents and ascendants; 2. x x x 3. x x x 4. Illegitimate children. x x x.”


Undeniably, children being com- pulsory heirs shall inherit from their parents. However, it is a well-settled rule in our jurisdiction that compul- sory heirs have only inchoate rights prior to the death of their predecessor. This simply means that children do not have any right over the property of their parents during the lifetime of the lat- ter. This is in view of the fact that the rights to the succession are transmit-


ted from the moment of the death of the decedent. (Article 777, Civil Code of the Philippines) It is only upon the death of the parents that the children will have legal rights to the inheritance or the estate left by the parents. Fur- thermore, it must be borne in mind that until the estate is partitioned, each heir only has an inchoate right to the prop- erties of the estate, such that no heir may lay claim on a particular property. (Ricardo S. Silverio, Jr. v Court of Appeal s. G.R. No. 178933, September 16, 2009) Applying the foregoing concepts, it appears that your brother-in-law cannot claim his share in the prop- erties of his parents considering that his parents are still alive. In fact, the parents can dispose of all their prop-


erties leaving nothing to their chil- dren or heirs and the latter cannot do anything about it. Your brother- in-law has only an inchoate right to the properties of his parents. His right to the properties of his parents will ripen to a legal right only upon death of his parents. It is only then that he will be able to claim his share in the properties of his parents. We hope that we have fully ad- dressed your query.


Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily col- umn of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to dearpao@manilatimes.net or via text message (key in: Times dearpao and send to 2299).


PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino 3rd has accepted the courtesy resignation of Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan, who is an appointee of former President and Rep. Gloria Arroyo of Pampanga. In a one-page letter, Senior Deputy


Executive Secretary Jose Amor Amorado told Libanan that his resignation is effective June 30, which was the day President Aquino took his Oath of Office. A copy of the letter was obtained by The Manila Times and was dated July 6. “This is to inform you that the


President [Aquino] accepts your resignation as Commissioner, Bureau of Immigration, effective 30 June 2010,” the letter stated. A source of The Times in the


Department of Justice said that the letter of Malacañang to Libanan is a clear message that he should start looking for a new job and that the position of Immigration commis- sioner is open to applicants. The Bureau of Immigration is under the Justice department. Libanan was a former congressman


for Samar and the representative of the House of Representatives in the Judicial and Bar Council.


JOMAR CANLAS


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18