President Benigno Aquino III when he celebrates his 52nd birthday

IT WILL be another working day for President Benigno Aquino III when he celebrates his 52nd birthday on Wednesday, February 8.


"The President will continue to work on his birthday," deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said on government-run Radyo ng Bayan Sunday.


Valte said there is still no advice from the President's private office on what will be his activities on that day.


But she said that the President may probably start his day by attending a mass at Heroes Hall together with the employees of the Office of the President like what he did during his birthday last year.


"Baka po ganoon po ulit 'yung mangyari," she said.


Asked if TV host Grace Lee, who is being linked to the President will be invited, Valte declined to comment.


A thanksgiving mass officiated by Fr. Arnold Abelardo was held at Malacanang's Heroes Hall during Aquino's birthday last year.


Aside from Palace employees, it was also attended by Aquino's sisters Kris and Viel and Vice President Jejomar Binay, among others.


The President also attended a candle lighting event in Quezon City for the start of the formal peace talks between the Philippine government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front.


He also hosted a medical and dental mission in Mendiola parking grounds, near Malacañang.


Valte said she will inform the media of the President's schedule once it is released. (Jill Beltran/Sunnex)

Aquino Sisters have come to the defense of their brother, President Noynoy Aquino.

Kris Aquino and sisters Pinky Aquino-Abellada and Ballsy Aquino-Cruz have come to the defense of their brother, President Noynoy Aquino.

The president was criticized for being insensitive when he attended the Christmas party of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) in Malacañang in the aftermath of typhoon Sendong, which barreled through Mindanao and left more than 700 dead.

P-Noy drew flak when actress Valerie Concepcion tweeted on Sunday, Dec. 18, that she was hired to sing for a gathering in Malacañang, which the President attended.

Her tweet started a hot debate on Facebook and Twitter, with people arguing whether it was right or wrong for the President to attend a social function in the midst of a calamity.

Krissy’s defense

On Monday, Dec. 19, Kris said in her talk show “Kris TV” that her brother was constantly on the phone, monitoring calamity-stricken areas such as Cagayan de Oro even though he did not go there on Saturday, Dec. 17. Pinky and Ballsy were Kris’ guests on Monday’s episode.

"I think hindi niyo po maiaalis sa amin na gusto naming idepensa ang kapatid naming,” she said.

Kris also mentioned that she will go to Cagayan de Oro on Monday, Dec. 19 to represent PNoy and her home network ABS-CBN.

Of those who accused PNoy of not caring, she says, “Give me a break, di ba? Siyempre, Pangulo siya ng buong Pilipinas at siyempre mahal niya ang ating mga kababayan. So, gagawin naman niya ang lahat.”

She also asked the public to go easy on her brother. "Sana huwag mabilis ang batikos because napakaraming ahensiya ang nagtatrabaho na. It's just that a President is not like you or me na we can hop on a plane and go there because there are a lot of national concerns,” she said.

Pinky: 'PNoy didn’t want to disrupt rescue operations'

Pinky said that PNoy didn’t want to disrupt the rescue operations of government agencies as he is set to visit CDO on Tuesday, Dec. 20. Ballsy, on the other hand, explained that his visit also has to go through a process, while the party for the PSG has already been long planned.

"Talagang pinaplano na nga na pumunta sa CDO. Alam mo naman kapag pangulo ka, hindi ura-urada ay gagawin mo yun at saka tinitignan lahat. Pero narinig ko na pinag-uusapan na ng PSG (Presidential Security Group) at ng PMS (Presidential Management Staff) kung ano ang mga dadalhin," Ballsy said.

She also added that the gathering has been a yearly tradition for PSG and doubled as a thanksgiving dinner. PNoy previously thanked the PSG for saving his life during the 1987 coup d’etat attempt where he was shot.

Ballsy: ‘Tradisyon ang PSG party’

"That party was for the PSG, ang mga nag-aalaga sa Pangulo at sa kanyang pamilya. Tradisyon 'yon na talagang every year ay nagsasama-sama. Kasi it's time to thank them for always being there,” Ballsy said.

Those who defended PNoy for attending the party said that the President also acted by delegating tasks to concerned government agencies.

Valerie later deleted her tweet and then said, “I do not see anything wrong with [attending the PSG party] since its (sic) his obligation and responsibility being the head of Malacañang to be present and show his support for his hardworking employees and their respective families. But I believe that it doesn't mean that the president is not thinking of ways to help our kababayan(s) in Mindanao. It doesn't mean that the president is disregarding the plight of our fellow Filipinos. Let's not be too quick to judge.”

Valerie also apologized to people who may have found her original tweet insensitive. “It wasn't my intention to do, either. I can't imagine how difficult life is for the people affected in Mindanao and how difficult it is to be the president of the Philippines at this moment. Once again, I am very sorry for all those people I have offended. May God bless us all," she tweeted.

Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said on ABS-CBN's "TV Patrol" on Monday, December 19, that the President only stayed at the party for few minutes and left immediately.

President Noynoy had a romantic date with a woman

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATE) – Did a woman refuse the romantic advances of President Benigno Aquino III?

The question was left in the mind of reporters who attended a Malacañang briefing Monday on Palace lawyers' recommendations for those found liable over the Manila hostage crisis.

Aquino hinted during the press conference that he recently had a romantic date with a woman.

"I'm just being friendly at this point in time," he said.

He did not mention the woman’s name but said that he has known her for years.

The woman reportedly does not want to become a center of public attention. "Yung nakasama ko dun, di na kami magkikita muli dahil ayaw niyang center of attraction siya," he explained.

“Kapag may dumating na changes, I guess I’ll inform you but at this point in time, priority has to be matters of the state,” he said.

“In matters of the heart, ipapanood ko na lang sa debede,” he joked.

According to the Manila Standard, Aquino and an unidentified woman had a date at the Nuvo Restaurant and Wine Bar in Greenbelt 2 in Makati City on Saturday night.

Aquino has reportedly broken up with his girlfriend, Valenzuela City councilor Shalani Soledad.

They have kept mum on their alleged break-up, with the President asking the media to respect his private life.

Two women have been linked to Aquino in recent days.

They are celebrity stylist Liz Uy and Patricia Ann Roque, a TV5 reporter.

Students heckle Aquino's First 100 days report

(UPDATE) University students on Monday stole the show from President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III as they demanded for a higher education budget.

Aquino was in the middle of a townhall-syle meeting for his First 100 days report when students interrupted the program and held a lightning rally inside La Consolacion College Mendiola.

“Isang daang araw pa lang malinaw ang kanyang tunguhin. Kakaltasan niya ang budget sa kolehiyo at unibersidad hindi makakapag-aral ang mga mahihirap na estudyante,” one student said, even pointing fingers at the President.

Three other students held coupon bond-sized placards demanding for education budget increase.

Aquino merely smiled and listened to the protester as program emcee Mari Oquinena tried to downplay the protest by lauding the act and even describing it as “freedom of expression.”

Aquino responded to the students and said the government has increased the budget allocation for education in next year’s General Appropriations Act. He also referred the students to Department of Education Secretary Armin Luistro.

The student heckler, later identified as Cesarie Ann Santos, Chairperson of the University of the Philippines-Manila Student Council, and three others were later escorted out by members of the Presidential Security Group.

Communications group Secretary Ricky Carandang said the hecklers were invited along with the UP Manila Chancellor.

Presidential Security Group Chief, Ramon Dizon explained there was actually no breach of security because the hecklers were listed as invited guests.

“They were invited, they had tickets. It’s a free country,” Dizon told Yahoo! Southeast Asia in a phone interview.

Dizon said although there was concern how they were able to stage a protest, the students posted no threat to the President.

“They’re not a threat to the President. Nobody was hurt, that’s more important,” said Dizon.

Dizon said although they can file charges, Malacanang opted not to sue the students.

In a related development, Communications Group Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma said the UP Manila Chancellor apologized for the students.

“They were expressing their apology and was even offering to relay their apologies to the President,” said Coloma in a phone interview.

“But the President took it very well and we did not view negativity,” Coloma added.



Photo by Jerome Ascano/NPPA Images

President Benigno Aquino III talks with bishop over the use of artificial contraception in population management

Amid an ongoing row on the issue, President Benigno Aquino III is now working out a dialogue with Catholic bishops over the use of artificial contraception in population management.

But Aquino also appealed for sobriety on the issue, which he described as inflammatory, adding he is hopeful a consensus can eventually be reached.

“We are setting a dialogue with some bishops. We are working out the details to make sure as many bishops as possible can attend the meeting," Aquino told reporters after speaking at the launch of a government health insurance registration program in Manila.

He said he hopes the dialogue can eventually lead to a consensus from all parties concerned.

“Talaga namang inflammatory ang issue na yan, pero palagay ko basta magkaliwanagan lang sa kani-kanyang posisyon kung talagang naghahanap ng kaayusan at yung tinatawag na consensus, eh bakit hindi natin mararating yan," he said.

(This is an inflammatory issue but as long as we clear the air and explain our positions – that is if we are really looking for better understanding — there is no reason why we can’t reach a consensus.)

But he maintained the State has an obligation to educate all of its citizens as to their choices, adding it cannot dictate on any couple “how they should plan their families."

Government-run dzRB radio also reported Aquino maintained he did not violate any law when he adopted an open stance on the use of artificial contraceptives in population management.

Meanwhile, Health Secretary Enrique Ona said he is open to a dialogue as well as a friendly debate with Catholic Church officials on the matter, so couples will be better informed.

Ona said such debates on the use of natural family planning methods pushed by Church, as well as artificial methods, should help couples decide wisely.

“My position is that at the grassroots level, we can advocate both natural and artificial contraception. We can also promote both methods not in the spirit of fighting but in the spirit of debate, with the objective of informing couples of their options, and leaving them to decide on the matter," he said Filipino in a separate interview on dzRB radio.

“Siguro naman lahat tayo naniniwala na talagang kailangang tulungan natin ang ating mga couple na iplano ang kanilang pamilya (I think we all agree that we must help couples plan their families wisely)," he added.

Catholic Church officials locked horns anew with the government this week after Aquino told Filipinos in the United States of his open stance towards artificial contraceptive methods.

Last Thursday, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president and Tandag Bishop Nereo Odchimar told Church-run Radio Veritas Aquino may be excommunicated for such a stance.

In the interview, he said excommunication for Aquino is a “proximate possibility." But on Friday he issued a disclaimer where he denied ever threatening Aquino with it.

He also stressed the Church is open to a dialogue on the matter.

Prolife rallies

Meanwhile, prolife groups vowed to mount their own show of force after contraceptive advocates rallied and distributed condoms in Manila Friday in defiance of the Catholic Church’s stance against artificial methods.

Dr. Rene Josef Bullecer of Human Life International indicated they are eyeing Manila and Cebu as venues of their initial activities.

“We are going to stage a rally here (in Cebu) and we are also expecting a big event there in Manila," he said in an article posted Friday night on the Union of Catholic Asian News website.

He argued artificial contraceptives made users sick of “cancer, hypertension, leukemia and other illnesses."

Bullecer’s vow came after advocates of reproductive health rallied at Mendiola near Malacañang and at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines office in Intramuros.

They also protested the arrest of fellow Reproductive Health (RH) Bill advocate and tourist guide Carlos Celdran, who made a scene at a prayer service at the Manila Cathedral by dressing up as national hero Jose Rizal and showing a placard with the message “Damaso."

“Damaso" is a fictional priest who fathered a child in Rizal’s novel “Noli Me Tangere."

On Friday, members of non-government organizations pushing for the approval of the RH bill in Congress rallied and distributed condoms in Manila.

Protesters said they support President Aquino in his recent “quarrel with Church leaders" over the use of artificial contraceptives in family planning. — LBG, GMANews.TV

Aquino's meals are burgers and pizza in his First day visit to the U.S.

President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino chose burgers and pizza for his meals in the first day of his working visit to the United States.

Upon arriving in San Francisco on Tuesday, Aquino and his delegation dined at “In-N-Out,” a fastfood restaurant known for its tasty hamburgers.

“The President noted that he and his cabinet secretaries were like kids as they enjoyed eating their burgers which were really huge,” according to a Malacanang statement.

Aquino is also looking forward to eating hotdogs, pizza and chow mien in New York.

“He recalled that his family used to eat pizza and chao mien when they were in Boston while his late father, former senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. was in exile,” the statement added.

While in New York, Aquino also broke his vow that he will not use sirens. His escorts there have insisted the use of sirens during his trip from the airport to the five-star Sofitel Hotel in Manhattan.

Aquino said the use of sirens, known in the Philippines as “wang-wang”, was beyond his control because “we’re just visitors here.” He discourages the use of the sirens in government vehicles, including those he uses as president, when plying public highways and roads.

Aquino is on a week-long working visit to the United States for the 65th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), and meetings with foreign investors, among others. He is also expected to meet U.S. President Barack Obama in the UNGA.

“If I get the chance to meet with President Obama, of course, that would be most welcome. There are a lot of concerns that have to be taken up with President Obama,” Aquino said in an interview with reporters in New York.

Aquino is also scheduled to meet with former US Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger and some officials of the Synergos Institute and AES Corporation. He will also meet with World Bank president Robert Zoellick.

Aquino will also face the foreign press, including meetings with the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. He will then visit the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, New York where he will be conferred with the Elizabeth Ann Seton medal, the school’s highest honor.

Aquino left on Monday, with high hopes he will be able to draw more investments from the US and generate more jobs for Filipinos.

Aquino’s U.S. visit is his first foreign trip since he was sworn into office in June, breaking the tradition of his predecessors who visit neighbouring Asian countries first.

by Thea Alberto, Yahoo! Southeast Asia