Miss Philippines Earth Candidates

 5 eco-friendly tips to save money

By Deni Rose M. Afinidad-Bernardo (philstar.com)

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Miss Philippines Earth candidates with Merrell Philippines President Charles Yu (second from right) and Marketing Manager Denise Lau (second from left). Philstar.com/Efigenio Christopher Toledo IV

MANILA, Philippines — A 6.5-magnitude quake in Leyte, a trillion-ton iceberg breaking away from the polar regions, and a business-as-usual approach to climate change that is “disastrous” for Asia, said the Asian Development Bank.

Environmental issues like these make Miss Philippines Earth valuable now more than ever, according to the pageant’s contestants.

More than just a beauty contest, Miss Philippines Earth has been a champion for environmental awareness and responsibility, said Charles Yu, president of global footwear brand Merrell.

As such, the brand has been partnering with the pageant for three years now since the brand, said Yu, has been inspiring adventures and motivating travelers not only to enjoy the outdoors but to respect it as well.

“Miss Philippines Earth candidates are not only beauties, but also passionate advocates of the environment,” Yu added.

Before the coronation night on July 15, select Miss Philippines Earth candidates shared some pieces of advice on how one can save lives and money while saving Mother Earth.

Former Philippine President Aquino could face jail ...

... over police raid

The former president of the Philippines faces charges for a 2015 police raid that left 44 officers dead. Benigno Aquino was indicted for usurping authority and allowing a suspended police chief to run the fatal raid.

Philippine Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales ordered criminal negligence charges against former President Benigno Aquino III for a 2015 operation that left 44 officers dead. During the raid, militants ambushed 400 police commandos sent to kill a Malaysian extremist. Aquino had entrusted police chief Alan Purisima - at the time suspended and facing corruption charges - with planning the operation to arrest a terror suspect in the town of Mamasapano, in Maguindanao province.

A Senate inquiry found that Purisima and Napenas failed to coordinate the operation with the military and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a rebel group that could have mediated. As a result of the carnage, the congress refused to pass a Muslim self-rule bill that would have crowned Aquino's efforts to bring lasting peace to the rebellion-torn Mindanao region, home to the Catholic nation's large Islamic minority. The congress could look at a new such bill within the next two weeks.

Carpio-Morales also plans to file charges against Purisima and another former official, Getulio Napenas.

 

Watch video01:05

Civilians flee fighting in southern Philippines

'Some erroneous conclusions'

Ernesto Abella, the spokesman for President Rodrigo Duterte , hailed the "heroic sacrifice" of the slain police commandos after Carpio-Morales announced the charges. "It is his - and the nation's - hope to finally bring justice to the victims and families of the Fallen 44 and put closure to the issue as part of the healing process," Abella said, speaking for Duterte.

Aquino, president from 2010 to 2016, could face several years in prison if convicted. An aide said the former president planned to study the Ombudsman's decree in order to file a motion for reconsideration. "An initial reading shows that there may have been a misappreciation of some facts surrounding the incident, leading to some erroneous conclusions," the aide said in a statement.

The bloodbath, infamously known as the "Mamasapano Massacre," helped to turn public opinion against Aquino, who later unsuccessfully campaigned to prevent the election of Duterte as his successor. The new president has frequently raised the Mamasapano incident as proof of his predecessor's misdeeds. Duterte's supporters had also filed a complaint of "reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide" against Aquino, but Carpio-Morales dismissed that.