00:01The House Justice Committee unanimously votes there is probable cause to impeach Vice President
00:06Sara Duterte. Congressman Paulo Marcoleta mixes up John Lloyd Cruz and Piolo Pascual during Sara
00:11Duterte's impeachment hearing. The Philippine Peso drops to a record low 61 pesos to the U.S.
00:17dollar. OPEC Plus will be weaker but remains intact with the exit of the United Arab Emirates.
00:22And a former law dean tells the Supreme Court local rules on recognizing foreign divorce in
00:27the country are unfair to Filipinos.
00:3853 lawmakers of the House Justice Committee vote there is probable cause to impeach Vice
00:43President Sara Duterte. The unanimous decision, Wednesday, April 29, moves her case a step
00:48closer to the plenary.
00:50From the misuse and abuse of confidential funds, bribery of debt-ed officials, to the alarming
00:56pattern of amassing unexplained wealth, to the gravity of threats and seditious incitement
01:02that strike at the very heart of our constitutional order, ito po ay claro, there exists probable
01:10cause to impeach the Vice President.
01:13This comes after four days of public hearings focusing on evidence against Duterte, from
01:18bank transaction records to a star witness who claims he was the bagman of Duterte.
01:23The fourth hearing zeroed in on Duterte's death threats against the first family, with video
01:27playbacks of her public statements.
01:40The Vice President and her legal team skipped all four hearings and instead issued public
01:45statements and conducted press conferences to deny the allegations.
01:48Meantime, the House Justice Committee votes against examining Duterte and husbandman Scarpio's
01:53box of tax records.
01:55Most of the legislators are wary of the legal implications of opening the box, which may
01:59violate the National Internal Revenue Code.
02:02May kapangyarihan ng Committee on Justice na buksan yung kahunayan.
02:08But to me, the crucial question is, kailangan ba natin buksan?
02:13The question is in relation to the determination of probable cause.
02:18And if we are talking about probable cause, para sa akin, ay nandiyan na ang ebidensya.
02:24Sapat na yan para makapagdeterminan na tayo kahit hindi natin bubuksan yung kahunayan.
02:31Meron pong kasabihan sa batasa, ex-abundante cautela with extreme caution.
02:40Congressman Paulo Marcoleta mixes up John Lloyd Cruz and Piolo Pascual during Sara Duterte's
02:45impeachment hearing.
02:47It starts with House Justice Committee Chair Jinky Luistro, who comments on the Duterte
02:51legal team's reminder to the panel to take care.
02:54Using the famous line, ingat, from the film, Luistro says it is not an expression of concern,
02:59but a threat.
03:00Yan talaga ang paalala ni Popoy, ingat tayo lahat.
03:08Pero dito, ang bilin nila na mag-ingat tayo ay mukhang hindi galing sa malasakit,
03:19tila isang babala, o baka nga isang babala.
03:26Marcoleta later cites Luistro's remarks as he urges the panel not to open Duterte's tax records.
03:33At sinabi rin po ni Popoy sa pelikula,
03:39I deserve an explanation.
03:41I deserve an acceptable reason.
03:46Siguriduhin niyo po na kung bubuksan niyo yan,
03:50meron po kayong acceptable reason na naayon sa batas.
03:56Akbayin Rep. Percy Sendanya corrects him, saying,
03:59Hindi po siya kay Popoy, linawin ko lang po.
04:01Ito po ay kay Papa P, kay Piolo Pascual,
04:04sa pelikulang starting over again.
04:08The Philippine Peso drops to a record low 61 pesos versus the U.S. dollar Tuesday, April 28,
04:14as the conflict in the Middle East continues.
04:17RCBC Chief Economist Michael Ricafort says the pesos weakening
04:20can be linked to what he describes as a lack of progress of U.S.-Iran peace efforts
04:25and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
04:27The pesos drop in value is projected to worsen inflation in the country,
04:31which the Banco Central forecasts to average 6.3% this year.
04:35This also makes imports such as oil more expensive,
04:38which are often paid for in U.S. dollars.
04:40Meantime, the Civil Aeronautics Board lowered the fuel surcharge
04:43from Level 19 to Level 18 for early May.
04:47The fee is added to transportation costs to cover unpredictable fuel prices.
04:51But even with the lower surcharge level,
04:54it remains high compared to the January to March rate of Level 4.
04:58Domestic flights in the first half of May will feature surcharge rates
05:01ranging from P627 to P1,834.
05:06International flights will have surcharge rates
05:08ranging from P1,958.44 to P14,561.87 depending on the country of destination.
05:19The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries or OPEC Plus and its allies
05:24may lose some influence over the oil market
05:26as the United Arab Emirates exits the group on May 1.
05:29But the oil-producing alliance is expected to remain intact
05:32and continue coordinating supply policies.
05:34The UAE is the fourth-largest producer in OPEC Plus
05:38and will quit after nearly 60 years as a member.
05:41That will free Abu Dhabi from the oil production targets
05:43imposed by OPEC Plus and its allies to balance supply and demand.
05:47Sources say the exit would complicate OPEC Plus's efforts
05:50to balance the market through adjustments to supply
05:53because the group would have control over less of global production.
05:58Former Far Eastern University Law School Dean Mel Santamaria tells the Supreme Court
06:02local rules on recognizing foreign divorce in the country are unfair to Filipinos.
06:07Santamaria serves as amicus curiae or friend of the court during oral arguments
06:11for a case involving a Filipino with dual citizenship who obtained divorce abroad.
06:15The petitioner wanted the divorce to be locally recognized
06:18but it was drunk by a Nueva Ecija court.
06:21And our policy today on disallowing recognition.
06:25Our policy today, Your Honor, I'm sorry to say,
06:28borders on racism is xenocentric
06:32and it mirrors a colonial mentality where the natives have less rights.
06:39Santamaria says rules on recognizing divorce are discriminatory
06:42with petitions between two Filipinos automatically rejected.
06:45In contrast, a Filipino's divorce from a foreign spouse
06:49obtained outside the country may be recognized in the Philippines
06:52under Article 26, Paragraph 2 of the Family Code.
06:55He points out how Filipinos only have more rights
06:58when they associate themselves with a foreigner.
07:00Apart from the Vatican City,
07:02the Philippines is the only country in the world with no divorce laws.
07:07And that's today's wrap.
07:08I'm JC Gutinga.
07:11Click the link below for the full story.
07:13For more updates, download the Rappler app.
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