inside Philippine politics and beyond
My Exclusive By Raïssa Robles Almost a year ago, the Supreme Court led by Renato Corona affirmed the conviction and jail sentence of Rosalio Galeos for making “false” and “incomplete” declarations in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) for four successive years. Galeos’ case and that of his co-accused, former Naga, Cebu mayor Paulino Ong, are [...]
By Raïssa Robles Chief Justice Renato Corona’s lawyers would like the public to believe that the under declarations and omissions in his SALNs (Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth) are all “not intentional”. What the lawyers aren’t saying is that CJ Corona was a tax and corporate lawyer who once worked for two banks and for SGV & [...]
My exclusive By Raïssa Robles When Renato Corona was nominated for a vacant seat in the Supreme Court back in 2001, an uncle of his wife Cristina personally wrote the Judicial Bar Council (JBC) to oppose his nomination in order “to save the SC from discredit and disrepute.” Jose Maria Basa III warned that Corona “will not be capable [...]
By Raïssa Robles This Year 2012, or the Year of the Black Water Dragon, one Chinese horoscope predicts that “something unexpected will happen.” That’s putting it mildly if applied to rapidly unfolding political events in the country. Long before the dragon sets foot on the celestial plain this February 4, two events have already occurred that would affect the [...]
January 28, 2012 To the prosecution panel The House of Representatives Dear Sirs: I am wondering why a press release from Congress says I am one of those to be subpoenaed to be asked in the impeachment trial of Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona. According to the press release, I am being summoned to testify on Article 7, of [...]
In the interest of fairness and justice, I would like to share with you this very fascinating glimpse of the man who is now at the center of a political firestorm – Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona. The excellently written sketch was written by Maria Rosa “Bing” Nieva Carrion, a former schoolmate of CJ Corona’s wife, Cristina. At the [...]
My exclusive By Raïssa Robles Chief Justice Renato Corona was required by the SALN law to disclose starting 2003 that his wife sat on the board of a state-owned corporation, former Civil Service Commission chair Karina David told me in an interview. David was chair of the Civil Service Commission when Cristina Corona first joined the board of John [...]
Some readers have commented that Cristina Corona was not a government official from 2003 to 2006, so Chief Justice Renato Corona was well within his rights not to disclose her as a government functionary in his own Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) for those years. I just talked to someone who set the record straight. I [...]
By Raïssa Robles Last night, my hubby Alan called my attention to a poster and a video he saw on the Internet. Let me tell you, Alan has this amazing way of looking into the nooks and crannies of the Web and finding fascinating stuff. I have learned a lot from the techniques he has taught me. Anyway, the poster [...]
Read his formula for computing corruption My exclusive By Raïssa Robles Prosecutors in the impeachment trial might not know they have a document they can refer to when they present ITRs and SALNs as evidence. It’s a document written by someone who happens to be named Renato C. Corona. The document is Chief Justice Corona’s landmark decision on July 15, [...]
My Exclusive By Raïssa Robles According to a Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) he filed in 2003, Chief Justice Renato Corona got what he described as a “cash advance” of P11 million pesos from a company he identified as his “wife’s family corporation”. What he didn’t say in his SALN was that the lender company had [...]
By Raïssa Robles Examining for the first time the official disclosures of Chief Justice Renato Corona regarding his worldly wealth, I am reminded of this bible verse from Luke, Chapter 16, verse 10: If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest [...]
Read the SC expenses rejected by the WB My Exclusive by Raissa Robles Last Monday January 16, Chief Justice Renato Corona denounced as “a huge lie” a leaked World Bank report stating that the WB had rejected the charging of plane fares, dinners, hotel expenses incurred under CJ Corona’s watch. These expenses amounting to US$199,900 were charged against a [...]
By Raïssa E. Robles Congressman Tedoro Casiño personally released this morning his own Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) without waiting for anyone to ask him. I’m glad he did. I hope he starts the ball rolling with the rest of the congressmen and senators. And those in the Executive Department. The Judiciary. The police and military [...]
My Exclusive By Raïssa Robles When Chief Justice Renato Corona bought his luxury penthouse overlooking a golf course for P14.5 million, the government taxed the transaction at under a million pesos. Iluminada Lucio, acting Chief of the Asset Valuation Division of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, confirmed to me that the transaction paid the correct taxes, if based on [...]
My exclusive By Raïssa Robles This contradicts the statement earlier made by Chief Justice Renato Corona’s lead lawyer that his client was still paying installment on his luxury condo to this day. A Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) officer told me he personally signed a document in late 2009 which assumed that CJ Corona had fully paid up for [...]
Low taxes “unheard of” in the business, broker says My Exclusive By Raïssa Robles Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona may have been sold a luxury penthouse at a very special discounted price. He also may have enjoyed tax breaks on the same transaction, courtesy of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, sources separately confirmed to me. What’s wrong with [...]
An Exclusive From Raïssa Robles Cocooned in a white tent during a typhoon, popular celebrity Pia Guanio cried with tears of joy as she said “I do” to businessman Steeve Mago. Their wedding was originally set for May next year in Italy but because Steeve’s pregnant sister would not have been able to fly there, the couple decided to move [...]
At the annual gathering of Manila’s foreign press, guests from the American diplomatic corps and the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) surprised us by bursting into song. It was a first for the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP), to be serenaded by those we interview. The song came with this intro - Those who have suffered through Manila’s [...]
Thank you. Thank you for dropping by my blog and taking part in the discussions. Thank you for taking the time to point out my typo errors and my mental lapses. It’s been a wonderful, sometimes painful and gruelling adventure with you all. I’m here for the long haul, don’t worry. And I know you’ll be joining me, too, every [...]