Here are today's headlines – the latest news in the Philippines and around the world:
- Hontiveros sues Maurilio, vloggers at DOJ for cyber libel - PMA hazing leads to cadet’s 8-month hospital stay - Makati City to withdraw from P9-billion subway settlement agreement - US Supreme Court clears way for Trump to pursue mass federal layoffs - Sean 'Diddy' Combs to be sentenced on October 3
00:08Senator Riza Ontiveros filed cyber libel complaints against former Senate probe witness Michael Maurilio and several vloggers
00:20The Philippine Military Academy says another case of hazing led to a cadet being hospitalized for eight months
00:26The Makati city government will withdraw from the 9 billion pesos subway agreement
00:30The U.S. Supreme Court allows Donald Trump's administration to push through with mass federal job cuts
00:35And a U.S. federal judge says music mogul Sean Diddy Combs will be sentenced on October 3 after his conviction in prostitution-related cases
00:44Senator Riza Ontiveros filed cyber libel complaints against several personalities including former Senate probe witness Michael Maurilio
00:53Ontiveros filed her complaints with the Justice Department's prosecution service on Wednesday, July 9
00:58She accuses the respondents of spreading disinformation primarily through a video in which Maurilio claimed Ontiveros bribed him to testify
01:05In a Senate hearing, Maurilio testified that he was abused by members of Kiboloi sect, the Kingdom of Jesus Christ
01:11He also said he witnessed suspicious activities by members of the Duterte family who are friends with Kiboloi
01:16Maurilio changed his tune in the video, which was posted on Facebook in late June
01:21Ontiveros said Maurilio made distress calls to her office right before the video was published on June 24
01:26And that he might be under pressure to recant
01:29Besides Maurilio, Ontiveros named the following respondents
01:32Last week, Ontiveros asked the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate Maurilio and several vloggers for cyber libel
01:41This time, she is formally asking the Justice Department to prosecute the respondents for a criminal offense
01:46Yet another case of hazing at the Philippine Military Academy has led to a cadet being hospitalized for eight months
01:54PMA Public Affairs Head Lt. Jesse Nestor Saludo says on Monday, July 7
01:59A 22-year-old 4th-class or freshman cadet was harmed inside the Baguio City campus last September
02:05Saludo did not name the victim
02:07Under the guise of training, the maltreatment happened from September 2 to 29 last year
02:11The cadet said he was physically assaulted, forced to perform extreme physical exercises
02:16And subjected to what he called animalistic tripping by his upperclassmen and batchmates
02:21The abuse was so grueling, it made him nearly lose consciousness and even collapse
02:25He was first brought to the Armed Forces Hospital in Quezon City
02:29Then later transferred to the PMA Station Hospital back in the campus
02:32He stayed there until June 30 this year
02:35The cadet filed a blotter with the Baguio City Police on July 2
02:38Saludo says the PMA conducted a thorough and impartial investigation
02:42Leading to three cadets being punished
02:44The police, meanwhile, identified four suspects
02:47The case has been referred to a prosecutor for possible criminal charges
02:51The PMA has a long history of hazing that has led to serious injuries or even death
02:56The most recent was 20-year-old Darwin Dormitorio, who died from hazing injuries in September 2019
03:02Three of Dormitorio's killers were convicted in 2023
03:05The Makati City government, led by Mayor Nancy Binay, will withdraw from the Makati Subway Project deal
03:13signed by her sister, former Mayor Abby Binay
03:15City Legal Officer Ava Ramel said in a press conference on Tuesday, July 8
03:20that the Singapore International Arbitration Center gave the city until Friday, July 11 to submit its position
03:26Nancy's transition team head Christian Robert Lim said the previous administration under Abby
03:31handed over scant documents of the deal
03:33He said the new city government received only a small box with a contract, annexes, and appraisals
03:39It did not include detailed records of the project's progress
03:42Nancy's administration also said it will create a fact-finding team
03:46to check the status and identify possible problems in the subway project
03:50She said they will review other public-private partnership projects made under Abby
03:54including the Makati Life Medical Center and the Makati Zen Card Program
03:58The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, July 8 allowed Donald Trump's administration to pursue mass government job cuts
04:06and major downsizing of several federal agencies
04:08This decision could lead to tens of thousands of layoffs while reshaping the federal bureaucracy
04:13In an unsigned order, the court said the Trump administration would likely win its case
04:18and that his orders were legal and within his authority
04:21The ruling follows an executive order Trump issued in February telling agencies to prepare for mass layoffs
04:27The administration plans to cut staff at the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, State, Treasury, Veteran Affairs, and many other agencies
04:37While the decision cleared a major legal hurdle for the White House, the court said it doesn't necessarily mean all layoff plans are legal
04:44Some layoff plans submitted earlier this year could still be challenged in court
04:48for reasons like union opposition, statutory restrictions, and civil service protections
04:54In the U.S., a federal judge says music mogul Sean Diddy Combs will be sentenced on October 3
05:01He was convicted on July 2 on charges of transporting prostitutes to engage in drug-fueled sexual performances
05:08Jurors acquitted him of sex trafficking and racketeering charges that could have put him behind bars for life
05:13The 55-year-old rapper remains in the Brooklyn jail, where he has been held since his arrest in September 2024
05:19Prosecutors accused Combs of coercing two former girlfriends, Cassie Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym Jane
05:26into unwanted sex with male sex workers aided by his employees
05:30A third woman who testified under the pseudonym Mia told jurors
05:34Combs sexually assaulted her multiple times during her employment with him
05:37Combs is known for having elevated hip-hop in American culture
05:41As he turned artists like the notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars
05:44He still faces dozens of civil lawsuits accusing him of abuse
05:48And that's today's rap
05:51I'm Kara Oliver
05:52Thank you for watching
05:53Click the link below for the full story
05:55Follow us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok
06:00Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok
06:02Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:04Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:06Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:07Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:08Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:09Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:10Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
06:11Thank you for joining us on Rappler's YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and Twitter
