How to destroy Rodrigo Duterte

You hate Duterte, I get it. I do not respect the fact that you hate Duterte, but I respect your right to hate him. Believing that he still doesn’t deserve to be the president despite a landslide win, you desperately want to bring him down. I get that too.

But over and over you fail, and I am starting to feel bad for you. That’s why this time, I am going to help you do exactly what you want to do.

Mainstream vs Indie: Who’s winning the PH social media wars?

A few days ago, I posted a Facebook status update that compares Mocha Uson Blog page stats with those of the four major media outfits in the country. I was able to get the stats using Facebook Page Insights, an analytics tool that’s freely accessible by anyone who owns a Facebook page.

To cut the long story short, I basically discovered that Mocha Uson is actually giving the four major networks (ABS-CBN, GMA, Inquirer, and Rappler) a run for their money in the social media game.

And so, I thought, why limit it to just five? Why not learn more about the social media wars by comparing all major networks with rising independent Facebook pages?

That is, who is dominating Facebook in the Philippines? And that’s what we will try to answer.

Death and the PH Drug Industry: from China to the Streets

This is the story of how Filipinos get “shabulized”, from start to finish.

Who is CHR Chair Chito Gascon? [Part 1 of 2]

If you have been watching the Senate hearings on extrajudicial killings, you’ve probably noticed the presence of Jose Luis Martin “Chito” Gascon, chairman of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR). With that said, there was something he said in the hearings that raised my eyebrows.

#LeilaDilemma: Ooh, Ronnie… you’re a very… very... bad boy.

Karma is a b*tch, and it bit de Lima right in the *ss.

Debunking Inquirer’s “Kill List”: Ten Illogicalities

On 07 July 2016, the Philippine Daily Inquirer published “The Kill List”, described as “an attempt to document the names and other particulars of the casualties in the Duterte administration’s war on crime”. The list is being updated twice weekly, with latest being on 15 August 2015. Since President Duterte took office on 30 June 2016, Inquirer claims that there had been 646 deaths as a result of Duterte’s war on crimes.

Inquirer argues that “The surge in the killing of suspected criminals since June 30, 2016, has been marked and unmistakable. Most of those killed were identified by the police as suspected drug dealers or pushers (“tulak”).”

Aquino, Duterte, and the “Kill List”: A Comparison of Extrajudicial Killing Statistics

Critics of the 2016 Philippine War on Drugs claim that there’s reckless bloodbath going on as the government allegedly employs (or at least, encourages) vigilantes to murder drug suspects, including innocent civilians.

But is there really a reckless bloodbath as a result of the new administration’s policies, or is the bloodbath something that the administration inherited from the Aquino Presidency?

Alam niyo kasi, nagkahalo-halo na ang paratang, nagkanda-bandwagon-bandwagon, kaya ang hirap matukoy kung alin ang alin. Tara’t linawin natin. 

Duterte’s War on Drugs anti-poor? Not necessarily

Recently, Ifugao Liberal Party (LP) Rep. Teddy Baguilat said [SunStar]:

“The rich and powerful are given deadlines to negotiate their surrender, are accommodated in the PNP White House, gets invited to coffee and are subject to an investigation… But the poor, the lowly drug pusher or the addict simply gets the bullet. It seems like the rules are different with the rich and the poor.”

This is statement is ridden with so many logical inconsistencies that I have to point them out one by one.

Ohhh... Rappler is liable for Cyber Libel?

Last April Fool's Day,  Rappler joked that they will be hiring trolls. Fast forward to August 2016, it appears that they weren't kidding.

Will Duterte cancel Pres. Marcos’ Burial at Libingan ng mga Bayani?

ThinkingPinoy is staunchly anti-Marcos and in his opinion, Marcos has no place in the heroes’ cemetery, the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB). However, in “Marcos in LNMB? Leni Robredo really is a terrible lawyer”, I have explained two very important things...

Can Duterte really declare Martial Law? The faulty "insight" of Rappler's Pia Rañada-Robles

Last month, ThinkingPinoy (TP) criticized Pia Rañada-Robles’ Rappler article “Duterte's first week as president: 8 things we saw”. TP said Cosmopolitan, a fashion magazine, managed to provide more insightful content than what Rappler gave.

In response, Rappler tweeted [Screenie]:

"We'd like to point out that the post you're referring to is a Rappler blog (it is clearly indicated in the story page). Rappler blogs are analysis and insight pieces from members of the Rappler team..."

TP tweeted back [Screenie]:

"analysis and insight pieces" EXACTLY the point. It's shallow insight.

Since then, TP makes sure to disregard all "insight" pieces written by Rañada-Robles. While’s Rañada-Robles opinions not exactly incorrect, TP finds them too shallow.

Note, however, that this is not entirely her fault, so...

TP READERS, FFS, DO NOT POINTLESSLY BASH PIA.

Note that the operative word is "pointlessly". Dahil kung may point naman...

Anyway,  Rañada-Robles struck again.

Hindi na nadala, humirit na naman si ate.

Marcos in LNMB? Leni Robredo really is a terrible lawyer

Thinkingpinoy (TP) started doubting Vice-president Leni Robredo’s grasp of law when he wrote “June 30 SOCE Extension? Leni Robredo used Obsolete Rule”. In that article, I showed that Robredo used an obsolete 2013 resolution to justify the Liberal Party’s late filing. Leni Robredo, a lawyer by profession, should have known better.

I discovered afterwards that Robredo failed the bar exam at least once [Inq], with some camps saying she flunked it three times. After that, Robredo condoned Pres. Aquino spokesman Edwin Lacierda’s #PisoparakayLeni fund raising drive [ABS], despite the fact that it squarely violates the RA 6713, or the Code of Ethics for Public Officials.

RA 6713 Sec. 7(d) reads [Gov]:
Solicitation or acceptance of gifts. — Public officials… shall not solicit or accept, directly or indirectly… anything of monetary value from any person in the course of their official duties.

So ano ba ang intellectual qualifications ni Leni para maging VP? May pagka-shunga si Ate e. Nag-tsinelas lang, tumakbo na.

Then Robredo struck again.

[Vetted List] Duterte names Mayors, Judges with Drug Links

President Rodrigo Duterte recited a list of judges, mayors, policemen, and military personnel with alleged drug links. Some of names he mentioned weren't complete, while some were mispronounced. Thus, ThinkingPinoy decided to verify the complete names of these public officials along with their respective constituencies.

MVP, Misuari, BBM, BBL, and ARMM Oil

The Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) allows the creation of an autonomous state in southwest Mindanao. The idea behind it is simple: provide the Bangsamoro people the power to change their own destiny. This is a no brainer at first glance, but a closer look at the Bangsamoro Basic Law, along with a small bit of the history of proposed revisions, reveal another story.

The 101-page original draft BBL by Rep. Belmonte et Al (House Bill 4994) is a challenge to analyze, and even with my patience at parsing documents, even I would admit that fully understanding the implications of every sentence is beyond my league. Fortunately, however, there is only one small part of the BBL that I am interested in. That is, this article focuses on Article V, Section 3 (29), to wit:

Exclusive powers are matters over which authority and jurisdiction shall pertain to the Bangsamoro Government. The Bangsamoro Government shall exercise these powers over… (29) Ancestral domain and natural resources [HB 4994].

In this article, we will discuss how this clause could be one of the primary reasons why BBL failed to pass. Specifically, we will evaluate this clause from the lens of the country’s premier oligarch: First Pacific CEO and Philex chief Manuel V. Pangilinan (MVP).

#CHExit: DFA's Perfecto Yasay says "There are many ways to skin a cat"

This is the complete statement of Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Perfect Yasay regarding former Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia's statement on Yasay's performance at the ASEAN ministerial meeting. ThinkingPinoy decided to republish this statement because Big Media ignored it entirely.

For Reed Bank, Sec. Del Rosario, MVP offered Spratlys to China

After a little more digging, documents show that Del Rosario and MVP have been interested in Reed Bank way before 2011, and they will do all they can – including committing treason – just to get it.

(Featured Image, L to R: First Pacific Director and PH Foreign Sec. Albert del Rosario, First Pacific Chairman Anthoni Salim, and First Pacific CEO Manny V. Pangilinan)