By Farah G. Decano    THE Philippine judiciary is safeguarded by two dedicated bodies established by the Supreme Court through Administrative Order 185-A-2018: the Judicial Integrity Board (JIB) and the Corruption Prevention and Investigation Office (CPIO). The JIB oversees misconduct and integrity issues concerning judges and court personnel, regardless of…

By Farah G. Decano   BEFORE Torrens Title to real properties can be transferred through succession, donation, or sale, the government must first authorize the transfer. This requires the payment of taxes - estate, donor's, or capital gains - to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).  Documentary stamp taxes are…

By Farah G. Decano   SENATOR Chiz Escudero is widely regarded as a staunch Marcos loyalist. Even during his time at the UP College of Law, he made no secret of his admiration for the deposed dictator, Ferdinand E. Marcos. This stance is understandable, considering his father served as the…

By Farah G. Decano   TITO Ermin, please accept my mea culpa. As a former legislator, I regret that I was not able to pass a resolution to honor your father, Ermin Garcia Sr.'s, profound heroism. While you never sought his recognition, I take full responsibility for this oversight -…

By Farah G. Decano PRESIDENT Bongbong Marcos has already named some of his re-appointees as of this writing. He has re-appointed Secretary Ralph Recto of the Department of Finance and Secretary Amenah Pangandaman of the Department of Budget; transferred Secretary Popo Lotilla from the Department of Energy to the Department…