There's a 'very, very strong case' against Albayalde, Gordon says

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 12) — Philippine National Police chief General Oscar Albayalde may face criminal and administrative charges for involvement in the irregular Pampanga raid when he was provincial police director in 2013.

Senator Richard Gordon, who leads the legislative inquiry into the "ninja" or drug-linked cops, said Saturday the testimonies of two former Central Luzon police chiefs are enough to pin the top cop down.

Chief drug buster Aaron Aquino earlier testified that Albayalde in 2016 asked him not to implement the dismissal of 13 Pampanga policemen over the flawed drug sting, where they allegedly got millions of pesos from recycling the seized shabu and extorting from the drug trafficker. Aquino was head of the Police Regional Office 3 when Albayalde called him. Albayalde was then acting regional police director of Metro Manila, a post he received after being placed under floating status for eight months because of the raid.

Aquino's predecessor, retired PCSupt. Rudy Lacadin, meanwhile revealed that Albayalde also called him to ask about the investigation he was conducting on the Pampanga cops. According to Lacadin, Albayalde supposedly said he got only "a little" from the raid. While Lacadin said this remark may have been made in jest, lawmakers, including Gordon, believe his statement was "damaging" to Albayalde's credibility.

Speaking at a media forum on Saturday, Gordon said, "We have the testimony of a general of the PDEA that he was approached and then another general came in, Lacadin, and then we have the circumstantial connection that if you put together you can really build up a very, very strong case criminally and administratively."

"He (Albayalde) really needs a strong lawyer," Gordon addded, saying there is enough circumstantial and testimonial evidence against the embattled PNP chief.

Albayalde has denied the allegations hurled against him and is now preparing to file charges against his accusers. He has asked veteran lawyer and and former Solicitor General Estelito Mendoza for legal assistance.

'I don't care if you're retiring'

Gordon did not specify what charges can be filed against Albayalde, but said neglect of duty is one of them.

"Albayalde should really be held liable for negligence, neglect of duty. He did not reprimand his men," Gordon said.

"He kept quiet until he got up in the ranks and he started talking with Gen. Aquino and everybody else," Gordon added.

Albayalde has been grilled for claiming he had little to zero knowledge of his subordinates' anti-drug operation, despite being their leader. He said he did not get himself involved because he thought it was just a "simple" operation. Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, former chief of the PNP's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, accused Albayalde of blocking the dismissal of his men and involvement in the raid.

Gordon said it is hard to believe Albayalde did not know what his men were doing. He said Albayalde should have been investigated along with the raiding team and not merely placed under preventive suspension.

Albayalde is retiring this month, but Gordon said nothing can stop anyone from filing a case against him.

"We have to lay the standard. I don’t care if you’re retiring. In the first place, that's wishful thinking. If he is really guilty, even if he retires, Magalong and the Secretary of Justice can still go after him," Gordon said.

Justice Secretary Menardo Gueverra has ordered a reinvestigation of the Pampanga cops' case. The National Police Commission, the body tasked to administer and control the 190,000-strong police force, is also reviewing the case, including Albayalde's possible liabilities.

President Rodrigo Duterte said he will wait for investigation results before taking action on Albayalde and his former subordinates. Albayalde's men, who are now called "ninja cops," were initially ordered dismissed. Four years after the raid, their punishment was downgraded to a one-rank demotion, something lawmakers have heavily criticized. Duterte previously said Albayalde’s “only link” to the erring cops was that he happened to be Pampanga’s provincial director when the questionable drug raid happened.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report.

Super typhoon Hagibis makes landfall on Japan's main island

TOKYO - A massive typhoon, bringing heavy downpours and winds, made landfall on Japan's main island of Honshu on Saturday evening, while the country remains at its highest alert level after an unprecedented emergency warning was issued for Tokyo and six prefectures.

The weather agency issued an emergency warning over Typhoon Hagibis ahead of its landing on the Izu Peninsula before 7 p.m., saying heavy rainfall "with a level of intensity observed only once every few decades" is predicted in Tokyo and the prefectures of Gunma, Saitama, Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka.

Japan was at its highest alert level as the typhoon threatened to sweep through Tokyo, with over 3 million advised to evacuate, train operators suspending most services and airports shut down in the metropolitan and surrounding areas.

Typhoon Hagibis, meaning "swift" in the Philippine language Tagalog, could dump amounts of rain not seen since a deadly typhoon in 1958, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

It is the first time the agency has issued the warning, the highest on a one-to-five scale, for Tokyo and the six prefectures.

Japanese authorities warned that the typhoon is causing water levels in a number of rivers, including the Tama and the Arakawa in the metropolitan area, to rise dangerously.

The projected path of the typhoon may result in further damage to areas in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo where another powerful typhoon destroyed houses and triggered widespread power outages in September.

Chiba's prefectural government said a tornado hit part of Ichihara and destroyed a house.

Local officials said a man in his 50s was found dead in an overturned car near the destroyed house, as the tornado likely caused his vehicle to roll over.

At least 50 people were injured in the prefecture and elsewhere in the country, according to a Kyodo News tally based on information provided by rescuers and other authorities.

Central Japan prefectures, such as Mie and Shizuoka, and Kanagawa southwest of Tokyo have issued evacuation advisories to many of their municipalities. The Tokyo metropolitan government advised residents mainly in its western suburbs to evacuate.

As of 6 p.m., the typhoon had an atmospheric pressure of 955 hectopascals at its center and was packing winds of up to 216 kilometers per hour. The agency downgraded Typhoon Hagibis' intensity to "powerful" from "very powerful" around 6 p.m.

It is forecast to bring winds of 216 kph to the Tokai region in central Japan and the Kanto-Koshin region, including the Tokyo metropolitan area, and could potentially knock down houses, the agency had warned.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. said as many as 770,000 homes were without power at one time in Chiba Prefecture.

Up to 1,000 millimeters of rain was expected in the Tokai region, and 600 mm in the Kanto-Koshin region, in the 24-hour period through midnight Saturday, the agency said.

Tokyo's Haneda airport, as well as Narita airport near the capital, were shut down.

There was no shinkansen bullet train service between Tokyo and Nagoya on Saturday. Just six early morning trains ran between Nagoya and Shin-Osaka, and operations between Shin-Osaka and Okayama were canceled from the afternoon.

Central Japan Railway Co. said train services on its Tokaido Shinkansen Line, departing from or arriving at Tokyo, are likely to be suspended on Sunday morning.

Meanwhile, West Japan Railway Co. said it is aiming to resume bullet train services between Shin-Osaka and Hakata on Sunday.

East Japan Railway Co. said it gradually suspended train runs in the Tokyo metropolitan area from Saturday morning and halted services around 1 p.m., including its Tohoku and Hokuriku shinkansen services.

Many stores in and around Tokyo were closed, or shelves were empty as people stocked up on food, water and other necessities.

Among manufacturers, Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. suspended operations at some of their plants Saturday.

According to the weather agency, the predicted rainfall amounts would be in line with those deposited by Typhoon Ida in September 1958, which left 1,200 people dead or missing across Japan.

That typhoon, known as Kanogawa in Japan, ripped through the Kanto region and the Izu Peninsula, causing the Kano River in Shizuoka Prefecture to overflow.

Apple yanks Hong Kong map app after call-out from mainland

Hong Kong (AdChoiceTV News, Oct 10) - Apple on Thursday removed a Hong Kong map application used by pro-democracy protesters, saying it endangered police, after China warned the US tech giant to drop the app.

According to a statement published by the makers of HKmap.live, Apple said “your app has been used in ways that endanger law enforcement and residents in Hong Kong.”

The city has been gripped by protests for four months, and there have been regular clashes between hardcore demonstrators and police. The app had relied on crowdsourcing to pinpoint the location of police officers and violence incidents across the city.

Apple’s withdrawal of the application from its App Store followed an accusation from China’s state media that the app “obviously helps rioters.”

An opinion piece in the People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, said on Wednesday: “Nobody wants to drag Apple into the lingering unrest in Hong Kong. But people have reason to assume that Apple is mixing business with politics, and even illegal acts.

“Apple has to think about the consequences of its unwise and reckless decision.”

HKmap.live published the App Store Review’s statement on its Telegram channel, which has more than 70,000 subscribers.

“The app displays police locations and we have verified with the Hong Kong Cybersecurity and Technology Crime Bureau that the app has been used to target and ambush police, threaten public safety, and criminals have used it to victimise residents in areas where they know there is no law enforcement,” the statement said.

“This use of your app has resulted in serious harm to these citizens.”

The developer did not comment further.

Apple — which has enormous business interests on the mainland — is just the latest Western company to fall over itself in a mad rush to appease China after drawing the ire of its media, both social and traditional.

In just the last week, the NBA, Tiffany & Co., and the shoe company Vans have all found themselves at the center of Hong Kong-related brouhahas.

AdChoiceTV News Hong Kong correspondent Robi Chan contributed to this report

Isetann Recto mall to reopen on Friday, management says

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 10)— The management of the Isetann Cinerama Complex has announced the Recto-based mall will be back in service on Friday—two days after the Manila City government shut down the establishment for lack of business permits.

“To our valued shoppers, employees, and partners, Isetann RECTO will again open tomorrow, October 11, 2019, to serve you,” the management wrote on their social media page, accompanying the post with the hashtag #WalangForever.

Reliable sources from the city government told AdChoiceTV News that the mall’s management has complied with certain requirements— including availing a lessor’s permit and correcting misdeclarations— allowing it to resume operations.

Isetann’s management has yet to announce a specific schedule for the reopening. City hall sources said the mall would have to wait for an order from the Business Permits and Licensing Office for it to resume operations.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno on Wednesday personally served the closure order on the mall, which is located along C.M. Recto Avenue in Quiapo.

The city’s Bureau of Permits and Licensing has recommended the mall’s closure for its violation of Section 118 of City Ordinance 8331 and misrepresentation in the application for a business permit.

The bureau has found that the mall is only allowed to do business as a shopping center with an area of 1,000 square meters with 10 employees. The bureau estimated that the mall has an area of 20,000 square meters, including the department store, supermarket, parking area and cinemas.

It added that the establishment did not have the permit to lease out stalls and spaces to tenants.

AdChoiceTV News Correspondent Robi Chan contributed to this report.

Philippine Police leadership shakeup

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 10) — The Philippine National Police on Thursday announced top-level changes happening over the weekend.

Central Visayas police chief BGen Debold Sinas will replace PMGen. Guillermo Eleazar as Metro Manila police chief.

Eleazar will be the next chief of the Directorial Staff, the third highest position in the PNP leadership.

PLtGen. Francisco Archie Gamboa will become Deputy Chief for Administration and PLtGen. Camilo Pancratius Cascolan will become Deputy Chief for Operations. Their new positions are co-equal and second in line from the PNP chief.

The new officers will assume their posts on October 12, Saturday.

The new appointments come a few weeks before the retirement of PNP chief PGen. Oscar Albayalde, who will step down upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.

'Yolanda housing fraud': Anti-corruption body recommends raps vs. NHA officials

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 9) — The Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) on Wednesday recommended the filing of charges against 12 government officials responsible for alleged anomaly in the housing project for survivors of Super Typhoon Yolanda.

PACC said that, after a six-month investigation, it found irregularities in the Yolanda Permanent Housing Program, which was tasked to build resettlement houses for the typhoon's victims.

PACC Chairman Dante Jimenez said in Eastern Samar — which was devastated by the super typhoon on November 8, 2018 — that the P741.53 million contract to build over 2,500 housing units was bagged by a sole contractor. He said that two years after the contract was awarded, only 36 housing units were completed.

"This means that J.C. Tayag Builders Inc. (JCTBI) had failed to perform its obligations in the contract despite receiving at least 15%, roughly P111.23 million," Jimenez said in a statement.

The contractor has denied being awarded majority of the contracts for the project.

PACC said 12 National Housing Authority officials should be charged by the Office of the Ombudsman for violating anti-graft laws, but did not disclose their names.

"The PACC Investigation Service found prima facie evidence against the respondents for giving unwarranted benefits, advantage, and preference to JCTBI, which was found to have fraudulently misrepresented its technical capacity into entering contracts with the government," it said.

Jimenez warned that the anti-corruption agency will continue its investigation into the housing mess until it finds the "brains" of the anomaly.

Super Typhoon Yolanda, known by the international name Haiyan, hit the Philippines on November 8, 2018 and killed at least 6,300 people.

AdChoiceTV News has been trying to reach J.C. Tayag Builders Inc but no response yet from the contractor.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan  contributed to this report.

Vans, Tiffany & Co. join NBA in tiptoeing around China on Hong Kong as ‘South Park’ takes censors head-on

Hong Kong (AdChoiceTV News, Oct 9) - Hongkongers took to social media over the weekend to show themselves dumping, torching, and even flushing Vans sneakers after the skateboarding apparel company removed a shoe alluding to the city’s anti-government protests from a design......

Alleged 'ninja cop' ordered arrested for snubbing Senate probe

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 9) — The Senate on Wednesday cited in contempt and ordered the arrest of Ronald Santos, one of the policemen involved in the controversial drug raid in Mexico, Pampanga in 2013 for failing to attend Senate hearings.

Senate Blue Ribbon Committee Chairman Richard Gordon announced the order at the resumption of their probe into the “ninja cops” controversy, wherein policemen allegedly recycle illegal drugs confiscated during operations.

Gordon noted that one of the officers from the Pampanga raid, which has been at the center of the controversy, has been repeatedly absent despite multiple subpoenas issued requiring the officers to attend the Senate inquiries.

Senator Panfilo Lacson also moved to cite Santos in contempt.

“Ronald Santos is very important in this case, we’ve been trying to get him,” Gordon said. “He is in contempt and we hereby order his arrest so that he could be brought here in person.”

The 13 policemen from the 2013 Pampanga operation were charged with grave misconduct for allegedly keeping 160 kilograms of shabu for themselves. The so-called “ninja cops” also supposedly received P50 million and new SUVs in exchange for the freedom of alleged Chinese drug trafficker Johnson Lee.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report

Not Just Fun and Games: Gamer stripped of tourney winnings over Hong Kong statement

Hong Kong (AdChoiceTV News, Oct 9) - A top online gamer from Hong Kong  was booted from an international eSports tournament and stripped of his winnings after showing support for the city’s protest movement, prompting outrage online and even calls for real-world revenge against the game’s developer.

Ng Wai Chung, who represents the Asia-Pacific region under the name Blitzchung, had just won a crucial match at the Hearthstone Grandmasters tournament when he exclaimed in Mandarin “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times” during a livestreamed interview with hosts in Taipei.

Hearthstone is a hugely popular online card game in which two opponents take turns to deploy different characters with different abilities to try to defeat each other.

The 21-year-old university student, who was wearing eye goggles and a gas mask — equipment frequently used by protesters in Hong Kong — pulled down his respirator to broadcast his message.

The online stream was cut off mid-interview shortly afterwards and the video has since been taken down.

Ng said he was not surprised at being kicked out of the competition, adding: “I don’t regret saying that stuff. And even now, I don’t regret it at all.”

The Hongkonger said he had been distracted by the sometimes-violent unrest in his home city over the past four months.

“Quite a number of large-scale protests overlapped the competition time,” he said. “Sometimes, I couldn’t focus on the competition.”

The makers of Hearthstone, Blizzard Entertainment, wrote in a statement Ng had broken their rules and said he will not receive any prize money — US$10,000 according to Ng — and will be banned from Hearthstone eSports for a year.

Those rules say players must not engage in acts that bring themselves into “public disrepute,” offend anybody, or damage the developer’s image.

Ng said his removal from the competition was “a pity” after spending four years in eSports.

“I sacrificed time hanging out with my friends and studying because of this competition. Even though it seemed that I had wasted four years of time, I have something more important in my heart — if we lose the movement, Hong Kong will end forever.”

The video game industry last year generated more than $135 billion globally — $43.4 billion of that in the United States alone.

According to Bloomberg, a small stake of Activision Blizzard — the parent company of Blizzard Entertainment — is owned by the Chinese holding company Tencent, and Ng believes the game developer could be bowing to Beijing’s world view by silencing him.

Doing so would put the developer in the dubious company of Vans, the NBA, and Tiffany & Co., all of whom in recent days have tripped over themselves in a rush to avoid offending the mainland’s delicate sensitivities with regards to Hong Kong.

Some gamers took to Hong Kong’s Reddit-like forum LIHKG to express their displeasure with Blizzard.

“I had been supporting the Blizzard Entertainment for nearly 20 years. I bought most of its games. I’m uninstalling all its games. I will not support Blizzard anymore.”

Meanwhile, over on the actual Reddit, one user was disseminating a plan that would enable anyone unhappy with Blizzard’s decision to hit them where it hurts, at least in the EU.

“I know a lot of people, myself included, are upset by Blizzard/Activisions spineless decision to ban Blitxchung [sic]. After personally uninstalling all of my Blizzard games, I thought, ‘what else can I do?'” user randomwordbot wrote. “The answer, is GDPR requests.”

Randomwordbot went on to explain that under EU privacy regulations, companies like Blizzard are required to disclose what information they are holding on an individual, and why, if that individual makes a formal request. Complying with the requests, he said, is time consuming, and failing to comply can bring costly fines.

Randomwordbot goes on to note that “if a company gets a significant amount of requests, it can be incredibly expensive to deal with,” before including a form letter others can use to formally make such a request.

The post had been up-voted more than 3,000 times since last night, with one user thanking randomwordbot for “doing god’s work [with] that premade letter.”

“I’m totally gonna do that first thing after I wake up,” the user added.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report

Gov't nurses must get higher basic pay, SC rules

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 9) — Government nurses secured a victory from the Supreme Court, which ruled on Tuesday that they are entitled to a higher basic pay.

In a statement, the high court said nurses working for public hospitals and health offices must be paid with the monthly rate for Salary Grade (SG) 15, four ranks higher than their current SG 11 category.

The SC en banc sided with the Ang Nars Party List, which sought clarification in 2015 regarding two conflicting provisions setting the minimum pay for nurses.

Then party-list Representative Leah Samaco-Paquiz initially wrote to the Department of Health, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Budget and Management to sort out the situation, but decided to run to the SC with a petition for certiorari when the matter was not resolved. Questioned before the court are provisions of the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002 and of Executive Order (EO) 811 issued by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2009.

Under Section 32 of Republic Act 9173 or the Nursing Act — which was also signed into law by Arroyo — the minimum basic pay of state-employed nurses "shall not be lower than salary grade 15." However, the President's EO issued seven years later pegged the basic pay of a Nurse I to SG 11. The case went through oral arguments in February.

Based on the latest tranche of salary increases that took effect this year, a Nurse I receives just ₱20,754 to a maximum of ₱22,829 in a month under SG 11. The SC ruling will bring their basic bay to at least ₱30,531, and eligible for increases up to ₱33,279.

"In ruling in favor of the petitioners, the Court ruled that Joint Resolution No. 4, being a mere resolution, cannot amend or repeal a prior law such as RA 9173 or the Philippine Nursing Act. The same applies to EO 811 which is also not a law, but an executive directive," the SC Public Information Office said.

Even though the high court said that government-employed nurses are eligible for the higher pay, it stopped short of ordering agencies to pay the difference.

The high cout said it cannot grant Ang Nars' request to compel the implementation of higher salaries, as it would "necessarily require a law passed by Congress providing the necessary funds for it."

Salaries for nurses and other government workers are covered by the yearly national budget, which is deliberated by Congress and referred to Malacañang for signing into law. It also prescribes how many job positions are available for each agency and at what rate the workers will be paid.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report.

Dormitorio family files charges vs. suspects in PMA cadet hazing-slay

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 9)— The family of late Philippine Military Academy (PMA) cadet Darwin Dormitorio on Tuesday formally filed charges against those linked to the fatal hazing of the plebe.

The Dormitorio family filed with the Baguio City court complaints of murder, torture, and hazing against PMA cadets supposedly involved in the hazing death of Darwin Dormitorio in September.

Respondents include 1st class cadet Axl Rey Sanopao, 2nd class cadet Christian Zacarias, and 3rd class cadets Shalimar Imperial Jr., Felix Lumbag Jr., Julius Carlo Tadena, Rey David John Volante, and John Vincent Manalo.

Apart from the seven cadets, the Dormitorio family also filed cases against two tactical officers and three medical doctors of the academy.

The cadets will face charges for violations of Republic Act 8049 or Anti-Hazing law and Republic Act 9745 or Anti-Torture Act. The doctors will face charges for "dereliction of duty."

This is my family's wish, as discussed last week it should be airtight, we are basing the charges based on evidences at hand," said Dexter Dormitorio, Darwin's brother, told AdChoiceTV News.

Republic Act 11053 or the "Anti-Hazing Act of 2018" bans all forms of hazing and orders the regulation of initiation rites — physical and psychological — of fraternities, sororities, and organizations to make it safer for recruits. The law also covers the citizens' military and army training.

It penalizes violators with up to 40 years imprisonment and a ₱3-million fine if a hazing rite leads to death, rape, sodomy, or mutilation

Dormitorio was a 20-year-old freshman cadet who died at the PMA hospital in Baguio City after he succumbed to fatal blows as a result of hazing.

After his hospitalization in August, he was brought back to the PMA Hospital on September 17. Dormitorio was diagnosed with urinary tract infection and discharged after a four-hour observation. Hours later, he was back at the barracks where he began vomiting. He was found unconscious early morning the next day. He was rushed to the hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

Top PMA officials, including its superintendent, Lt. Gen. Ronnie Evangelista, resigned after the cadet's controversial death. Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has also ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to conduct a separate probe on the incident.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report. 

GCTA scheme whistleblowers say their lives are in danger

Metro Manila (AdChoiceTV News, October 8) — Witnesses who exposed the alleged “freedom for sale” scheme in the country’s prisons are fearing for their lives, saying they have received threats after testifying in the Senate.

We have children and siblings who receive unusual calls, so we are worried. "Yolanda Camilon told AdChoiceTV.

Camilon and her husband, Godfrey Gamboa, testified before the upper chamber’s Blue Ribbon committee during its probe on the expanded Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law. They claimed that Bureau of Corrections officials asked for money in exchange for the early release of inmates through the GCTA policy.

Jean Runnstrom, the Filipino-Swedish lawyer who claims to have helped Camilon and Gamboa testify at the Senate, is also fearing for her life as she has supposedly received threats from BuCor officials.

“I was being warned through phone and text that my life is in danger and they're planning my liquidation,” Runnstrom told AdChoiceTV.

AdChoiceTV is still reaching out to BuCor employees whom Runnstrom has implicated for their comment.

As a member of the group Citizens Crime Watch, Runnstrom said she has helped several families of inmates in different facilities of the BuCor — among them, Camilon and Gamboa.

Runnstrom said Camilon even stayed at her house for a while. This was confirmed by Camilon, saying that she stayed at the lawyer’s house after she tried to retrieve her payment to BuCor officials.

Runnstrom is appealing to the Swedish government for help as she fears for her and her family’s safety. She said she will also seek the help of law enforcement agencies.

“This is really getting serious. And killing me isn't gonna stop this. Because I'll just (be) one of those who'll be eliminated,” Runnstrom said.

Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said they will protect and assist those who help them in finding the truth.

Currently, Camilon and Gamboa are under Senate custody.

Runnstrom said she is somewhat disappointed because the issues hounding the BuCor have not yet been resolved at the Senate Blue Ribbon committee probe.

However, she is optimistic that Senators will work to improve the situation in the BuCor.

The Senate Blue Ribbon committee will resume its hearing on the controversial implementation of GCTA and “ninja cops” on Wednesday.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report

Police confirm 77 people arrested over controversial mask ban since Friday

More than 70 people have been arrested over Carrie Lam’s controversial mask ban since it was implemented at midnight on Saturday morning, Hong Kong police said today. At a police press conference this afternoon, Kwok Yam-yung, regional......

AdChoiceTV News has been trying to reach Chief Executive Carrie Lam for more comments.

Updates will be posted soon...





AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan reporting.

Footage of mainlander assaulted in Hong Kong sparks outrage in China (VIDEO)

Video of a Chinese office worker being punched by a Hong Kong democracy supporter as a crowd chanted “go home” has caused outrage on the mainland, highlighting widening polarization in the financial hub. Footage shot by both reporters......

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan reporting

Lam ‘won’t rule out’ asking Beijing for help with Hong Kong protests

Hong Kong’s embattled leader Carrie Lam said today that she would not rule out accepting help from mainland China in tackling increasingly violent pro-democracy protests.

The city has been gripped by four months of rallies, and last weekend saw much of the city grind to a halt as masked demonstrators took to the streets in defiance of a controversial ban on face coverings.

Lam’s decision last Friday to invoke colonial-era emergency powers — not used for half a century — to impose the ban sparked some of the most violent scenes since the crisis began, as hardcore protesters trashed dozens of subway stations, vandalized shops with mainland China ties, built fires, and blocked roads.

As much of the city returned to work today after a three-day weekend, Lam told reporters that while she believes the city’s authorities can cope with the unprecedented troubles, China could be called upon if the situation becomes “so bad.”

“At this point in time, I still strongly feel that we should find the solutions ourselves. It is also the position of the central government that Hong Kong should tackle the problem on her own.

“But if the situation becomes so bad, then no options can be ruled out if we want Hong Kong to at least have another chance.”

Lam has faced widespread criticism over her decision to ban face masks — ubiquitous in Hong Kong since a deadly SARS outbreak in 2003 — and thousands of Hongkongers flouted the prohibition during an unsanctioned mass march on Sunday.

So far two people — a male university student and a 38-year-old woman — have been charged with illegally wearing masks, and supporters wore their own face coverings during a court appearance on Monday.

The two were charged with unlawful assembly, which carries up to three years’ jail time, and with defying the mask ban, which has a maximum one-year sentence. Both were released on bail.

Lam told journalists today it was “too early” to say whether the anti-mask law was effective or not.

“I’m sure you’ll agree that for any new policy or new legislation, it will take time to be effectively implemented,” she said.

Lam also would not be drawn on a suggestion by one of her cabinet members, the veteran pro-Beijing politician Ip Kwok-him, that Hong Kong may curb access to the internet in a bid to contain the protests.

The leader insisted she was “very committed” to using political, legal, and policy instruments, including dialogue, to address some of the “deep-seated problems” in the city.

Thirteen of the city’s subway stations remained closed today, and the MTR Corp said the entire network would close hours early at 8pm.

According to Hospital Authority figures, 10 of the 13 people admitted to hospital over the weekend were in a stable condition on Tuesday, while three had been discharged. - AdChoiceTV News

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report

Kidnappings can still happen in Mindanao despite martial law, Duterte spokesman says

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said today that kidnappings in Mindanao can still take place despite the island being under martial law, as the police scramble to rescue a couple who were kidnapped in Zamboanga del Sur last week.

Mindanao has been under martial law since the Marawi Siege of 2017 when Maute rebels attacked the city. President Rodrigo Duterte has extended it three times, despite the defeat of the rebels, saying that public safety requires it. Martial law will end on Dec. 31 this year, but his security adviser Hermogenes Esperon said he will recommend that Duterte extend it again by one more year.

In his press conference today, Panelo downplayed the kidnappings last week of British national Allan Arthur Hyrons and his Filipino wife Welma Paglinawan-Hyrons from a beach resort in the town of Tukuran in Zamboanga del Sur province in Mindanao. The police said they were abducted at gunpoint then brought to motorized boats that sped off into the seas.

“Sometimes that happens even if we still have martial law. These are isolated cases; sometimes they cannot be avoided,” he said.

“I’m sure the PNP (Philippine National Police) will do something about it. It doesn’t have to be directed by the president. They know what to do.”

Panelo advised foreigners to “always take care of themselves. Avoid places where danger lurks.”

However, he did not say whether tourists should avoid Zamboanga del Sur.

“Let the PNP there, the army take care of the place,” he said instead.

Today the police have released a computer-generated sketch of one of the suspected abductors based on the description given by witnesses. The alleged kidnapper has been described as around 30 to 35 years old, dark, and 5’6″ tall. The police said they are not sure if the suspect is a member of a terrorist group or a kidnap-for-ransom gang.

Meanwhile, the Zamboanga del Sur provincial government has offered a PHP1 million (US$19,273) reward to anyone who could give information on the Hyrons’ whereabouts. In a statement, it also assured the public that the kidnapping was an “isolated case” and that Zamboanga del Sur “remains safe and generally peaceful.”

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report

Fulham teen Ben Davis to play for Thailand amid Singapore conscription row

Singapore’s first English Premier League footballer looks set to play for Thailand in the Southeast Asian Games, after the city-state warned he could face jail for skipping national service.

Ben Davis signed a two-year deal with Fulham last year at the age of 17, but Singapore’s government refused to allow him to defer mandatory national service.

He will join Thailand’s under-23 squad for the Southeast Asian Games, in the Philippines in November and December, according to a provisional squad list posted by the Football Association of Thailand on its website.

Davis had previously represented Singapore at the under-16 and under-18 levels.

While he is a Singapore citizen, local media reported he was born on the Thai holiday island of Phuket to a Thai mother and a British father and only moved to the city-state aged five.

All Singaporean men aged 18 must serve two years in the military, the police or the emergency services, an obligation authorities rarely let people skip.

The defense ministry warned earlier this year that Davis could face up to three years in jail if convicted of violating the enlistment act.

He could also face a fine of up to S$10,000 (US$7,200).

The ministry said Davis did not meet the criteria to skip national service when it refused his application to defer it last year.

The refusal to allow Davis to miss national service fuelled a debate about whether the conscription system is too strict in the city-state, where the Premier League is hugely popular.

In the past 15 years, only three athletes, including Olympic champion swimmer Joseph Schooling, have been given permission to miss national service, according to The Straits Times newspaper.

The biennial Southeast Asian Games is a multi-sport tournament attended by thousands of athletes from around the region.

AdChoiceTV News, Robi Chan contributed to this report