De Lima says she will ‘keep fighting’ as opposition senators call for her release

A YEAR after being jailed on charges she insists were concocted to silence her, a top critic of Philippine President Rodrigo R. Duterte says she believes justice is coming. Senator Leila M. de Lima has been pursuing Mr. Duterte for almost a decade, beginning with allegations he directed a death squad against suspected criminals while mayor of the southern city of Davao. But now that the International Criminal Court has opened an initial probe into the deadly anti-drug war Mr. Duterte launched after becoming president 20 months ago, she says she has new reason to hope. — >> See full story on

Leagues of LGUs to help consultative committee bring ‘Cha-cha’ discussions to communities

THE UNION of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) is planning to assist the consultative committee that will review the 1987 Constitution by facilitating community discussions on the proposed Charter change (Cha-cha). Davao City Councilor Danilo C. Dayanghirang, the public relations officer of ULAP, said these community visits would be a means for the committee members to consult the people on federalism. “We just conducted our (ULAP) meeting in Manila and we presented our support. We will campaign for the federal system… We will help facilitate the constitutional (committee) to go down so that they can consult the people about it,” Mr. Dayanghirang said in an interview in Davao City. President Rodrigo R. Duterte created the consultative committee in December 2016 through an executive order and named 19 of the 25 members in January 2018. ULAP is the umbrella organization of all leagues of local government units (LGUs) and locally elected government officials. —