00:01Vice President Sara Duterte's alleged former bagman says it took 24 hours to spend 125 million
00:07pesos of confidential funds in 2022, not 11 days. The Energy Department warns of a possible fuel
00:13price hike next week. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. debunks rumors about his health.
00:19Suspended lawmaker Kiko Barzaga surrenders to authorities over his cyber libel case.
00:25And U.S. President Donald Trump posts an AI image of himself as a Jesus-like figure.
00:38Ramil Madriaga, Vice President Sara Duterte's alleged former bagman, refutes findings that
00:43it took the office of the Vice President 11 days to spend 125 million pesos in confidential funds
00:48in December 2022. This is wrong because I personally disposed the money in less than 24 hours.
00:57Madriaga tells the House Justice Committee Tuesday, April 14, he coordinated with Duterte's security
01:02officers to transport bags of cash containing around 30 to 35 million pesos each. The bags
01:08were supposedly delivered to the following locations. Duterte's confidential expenditures
01:15are a central point in the impeachment complaints against her. During Tuesday's hearing, Madriaga
01:20claims he first met Sara in 2018 through then-President Rodrigo Duterte. He also alleges he served as a
01:26financial dummy of the President and his associates during his presidency. He adds, in 2021, he supposedly
01:32received funds from formerly boss Lin Weishong to finance Sara's election campaign. Madriaga also
01:38presents before the committee videos and photos to prove his close links to Vice President Sara Duterte.
01:43These include materials showing his involvement in Sara's 2022 election campaign and their
01:48interactions. One video shows Duterte calling Madriaga Sir Ram and handing him a Philippine flag.
01:54This counters Sara's denial of any personal relationship with Madriaga. She claims she
01:59never visited him in prison nor spoke to him about anything at any time.
02:04Energy Secretary Sharon Garin warns of a possible increase in fuel prices starting Monday, April 20.
02:10She said this a day after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced a big-time rollback in fuel prices
02:16effective Tuesday, April 14. Garin told senators during the Senate proactive response and oversight
02:21for timely and effective crisis strategy committee on Monday, April 13, United States President Donald
02:27Trump and other parties involved in the conflict have become unpredictable. She adds oil market prices
02:32began to fall after a ceasefire was announced on Wednesday, April 8. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
02:37also orders the Department of Agriculture and the Tariff Commission to look into lowering tariffs of
02:42imported agricultural goods. Meantime, Iranian and U.S. officials ended their highest-level talks
02:48in decades without a breakthrough. But 11 sources familiar with the negotiations said dialogue was
02:53still alive. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. debunks rumors he is sick or dead through jumping jacks.
03:01I challenge anyone who are saying that I am sick that they come and exercise with me. We will see
03:10who is
03:10stronger. Come to the gym with me. Tingnan natin kung sino mas malakas magbuat ng weight.
03:16In the past weeks, social media was rife with allegations that Marcos had either been confined
03:20because he was seriously sick or that he had died. The claims peaked on Araw ng Kagitingan when critics
03:26allege that footage of the event aired on state-run programs and images from independent media were
03:30either AI-generated or taken from the previous year. Without naming specific individuals, Marcos adds,
03:43Marcos also says his health is back to normal and the last time he was in the hospital was some
03:47two and a half
03:48months ago for a CAT scan to check his colon. Suspended lawmaker Kiko Barzaga surrenders to
03:55police authorities Monday, April 13 after a court issued an arrest warrant over his cyber libel case.
04:01He presented himself at the Dasmariñas Component City Police Station accompanied by legal counsel.
04:07Makati City Regional Trial Court Branch 147 issued an arrest warrant against him related to eight counts of
04:12cyber libel. Business tycoon Enrique Razon sued the neophyte congressman for cyber libel after he
04:18accused the billionaire without proof of bribing members of the National Unity Party. Barzaga later
04:23apologized for his remarks. Bail was recommended at 48,000 pesos for each count. Rappler reached out
04:30to Barzaga's staff for his side but has yet to receive a response. He has been suspended in the
04:35house since December over his reckless social media behavior. He was accused of inciting to sedition
04:40over posts that joked about setting the Batasang Pambansa on fire.
04:46U.S. President Donald Trump posts an AI-generated image of himself as a Jesus-like figure and later
04:51deletes it. This draws widespread criticism even from some religious conservatives who typically
04:56support him. Trump later says the post was meant to portray himself as a doctor. This comes amid his
05:03escalating feud with Pope Leo who has criticized the war that started with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran
05:08as inhumane. Meantime, Pope Leo criticizes violations of international law by quote
05:13neocolonial world powers in a forceful speech during an Africa tour. This was hours after Trump's direct
05:20attack on him. Leo tells Reuters on the papal flight he planned to continue speaking out against war
05:25despite Trump's comments. He adds quote, I don't want to get into a debate with him. I will continue to
05:31speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue, and multilateral
05:36relationships.
05:39And that's today's wrap. I'm JC Guttinga. Thank you for watching. Click the link below for the full
05:44story. For more updates, download the Rappler app.
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