00:00Today on Rappler
00:13Senator Nancy Binay walks out of a hearing led by Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on the
00:17Senate office that's under construction.
00:20Labor groups lobby for a more substantial across-the-board base pay after an insulting
00:2535-peso NCR wage hike.
00:28Two Chinese nationals linked to a pogo in Porak, Pampanga are sued for human trafficking.
00:33Former U.S. officials say the Biden administration has undeniable complicity in killings in Gaza.
00:40And SB19's 1Z Entertainment is forming a girl group.
00:46The feud between Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Nancy Binay takes center stage in a Senate
00:51hearing that is supposed to look into the ballooning construction costs of the new Senate
00:55building.
00:56Cayetano launches the inquiry into the issue in his capacity as Committee on Accounts chairman
01:01after Senate President Chiz Escudero ordered a comprehensive review.
01:05At the hearing, former Committee on Accounts Chair Binay refutes Cayetano's claim, saying
01:10the construction costs only P21.7 billion and not P23 billion.
01:16Cayetano insists the cost is at P23 billion due to land acquisition.
01:21Towards the end of the heated exchange, Binay asks the Department of Public Works and Highways
01:26if there was a P23 billion amount in their documents.
01:29There is not.
01:30Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
01:31I made my point.
01:32There's no such thing as P23 billion in the DWA.
01:35Let's do it again.
01:36The whole of Canada.
01:37Let's finish this properly.
01:38This is the Senate of the Philippines, not a market.
01:45Labor groups are doubling down lobbying and campaign efforts to pass the bill granting
01:50a more substantial across-the-board base pay.
01:53This after the Metro Manila Regional Wage Board approved what workers called a measly
01:58P35 increase for minimum wage earners in the region.
02:02The base salary in the non-agriculture sector rose from P610 to P645.
02:09Workers from the agriculture sector and establishments employing 15 or less workers will now earn
02:15P608 from the previous P573.
02:19Bukluran na Manggagawang Pilipino President Luke Espiritu says his group will gather support
02:24for a legislated wage increase of at least P150.
02:28Meantime, Nagkaisa Labor Coalition Spokesperson Rene Magtubo questions the Wage Board's decision
02:34of a P35 increase.
02:37He says the Senate is discussing a P100 increase while the House talks of a P150 increase.
02:45The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission and civilians filed criminal complaints against
02:50two Chinese connected with Lucky South 99, a pogo in Porak, Pampanga, for human trafficking
02:56and kidnapping.
02:58On Tuesday, July 1, Justice Department prosecutors received complaints against Chinese nationalist
03:03Qin Rengu, who is originally from Hunan province in China, and Jiang Shiguang from Hebei province.
03:10The two faced these criminal complaints and are currently under PAOC custody.
03:15DOJ prosecutors say they cannot disclose the names of the civilian complainants who are
03:19Chinese due to security reasons.
03:23Complainants claim they were restrained to a bed frame, kept locked for several days,
03:27and were beaten.
03:28Workers from Lucky South 99 say they were trafficked and tortured.
03:32Senator Sherwin Gatchalian describes Lucky South 99 as the most brutal, violent hub he's
03:38seen.
03:40Former U.S. officials who quit over U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza accused President
03:45Joe Biden's administration of undeniable complicity in Palestinian killings.
03:50In a joint statement, a dozen former officials say the administration was violating U.S.
03:55laws through its support for Israel and finding loopholes to continue shipping weapons to
03:59its ally.
04:01This as Israel's offensives and U.S. support of the war faced mounting international criticism.
04:06The war in Gaza has killed nearly 38,000 people and has created a humanitarian crisis.
04:12Meantime, Biden faces increasing pressure to bow out of his 2024 re-election bid following
04:18his performance in the presidential debate against Donald Trump.
04:21A House Democratic aide says there are 25 Democratic members of the House preparing
04:26to call for Biden to step aside.
04:28But White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says Biden did not have an episode, just a
04:33bad night.
04:36One-Z Entertainment, the talent agency established by P-pop group SB19, kick-starts its search
04:42for a new girl group.
04:43One of the main reasons why they want to establish One-Z is really for SB19 to leave a legacy
04:50in the industry.
04:53SB19's leader, Pablo, who also serves as the company's CEO, says plans to create a girl
04:58group first surfaced in 2021.
05:01In an interview with Rappler, he says he wants a work environment where ideas are honed and
05:05created.
05:06It's good that the artists have input when it comes to what direction they want to go.
05:13We're here to help them.
05:15SB19 will be hands-on with the process from screening the applicants to the training proper.
05:21Auditions are underway and are extended until July 12, 2024.
05:27And that's today's wrap.
05:28I'm Kara Oliver.
05:29Thank you for watching.
05:31Click the link below for the full story.
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