Daet, Camarines Norte (16 June) -- The Police Provincial Office (PPO) of Camarines Norte launched Monday (June 8) the "Kalaswaan, Dapat I-ban" or campaign against pornography in front of the PPO headquarters here.

Naalaala ko nang huling gumamit ng ganitong formula, sa klase sa chemistry. Hindi nga ba't ang urban legend ay tinanong daw ni Eddie Ilarde, host ng noontime show na Student Canteen, ang kontestant, "Ano ang pangkaraniwang tawag sa NaCl?" At dahil hindi makasagot ang kontestant, nagbigay ito ng clue. "Ito ang binubudbot niyo sa itlog ng inyong Mister." Dali-daling sumagot ang kontestant, "Pulbos!" Namula si Ilarde, humagalpak ng tawa, pati ang mga audience sa studio. Nagtataka lamang ang kontestant kung bakit.

LEGAZPI CITY, June 17 - The Supreme Court's (SC) Justice on Wheels (JOW) has gained another milestone in bringing justice to inmates in Albay after it freed 84 of them at the Albay Provincial Jail and Legazpi City Jail recently. Supreme Court Justice Reynato Puno over the weekend led court officials in bringing a JOW mobile court to this city to hear cases of detainees still languishing in provincial and city jails, awaiting court decisions.

LEGAZPI CITY, June 18 --- Drinking liquor in street sidewalks and other public places will be a thing of the past in this premier city after the city legislative council is strongly bent on passing an ordinance to this effect. Rollie Rosal city councilor and proponent of the ordinance said the proposed ordinance had been deliberated at the committee level and is scheduled for the third and final reading on Tuesday.

MANILA, June 15, 2009-Pampanga Gov. Ed Panlilio called on the Catholic bishops' leadership Monday to endorse specific candidates in the coming 2010 presidential elections. Panlilio, a suspended Catholic priest, said it is about time for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to be effective in giving political advice. He said naming specific "model" candidates would surely make a difference than just telling the voters to "vote wisely."

SEOUL, June 19 -- South and North Korea failed to reach an agreement at Friday's talks over Pyongyang's demands for wage and rent hikes at a joint industrial venture, but agreed to meet again next month, a Seoul official said. The two sides will hold a follow-up meeting on July 2, Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said in a briefing.

MANILA, June 19 (PNA) -- The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) on Friday said claims of a total of 523 accounts amounting to P87.5 million in Legacy banks have been denied. PDIC president Jose Nograles said the said accounts were denied because these are either not in the master list of deposit accounts, or deposits converted from pre-need plans or came from fictitious loans and the bank's marketing promotions.

PILI, Camarines Sur -- Government forces will embark on a renewed military offensive against communist rebels in an all out bid to end the four-decades old insurgency problem in Bikol by 2010, a ranking Army officer here said recently.

As we continue to prepare for the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Devotion to Our Lady of Peñafrancia, we have been led to reflect on the various activities normally held during the Fiesta, hoping to discern ways and means to preserve and enhance the devotion to Ina.

The Bicol Association of Catholic Schools (BACS) has issued a statement declaring its opposition to the scheduling of the traditional Military Parade during the days of the Peñafrancia novena. The BACS' statement was a result of the meeting of BACS representatives last June 18 in Naga; the meeting was part of the Catholic schools' efforts "to discern ways and means to preserve and enhance the devotion to Ina."