Context Dispatch

Thousands of members of the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), clad in white shirts bearing the words "Accountability" and "Transparency," gathered Monday at Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila and the EDSA People Power Monument, causing heavy traffic as they protested the plunder case filed against Senator Rodante Marcoleta and his reported impending arrest. In a statement, the religious group said it was not opposing the enforcement of the law but objecting to what it described as its selective application to conceal corruption. The INC claimed the case was intended to silence Marcoleta's anti-corruption campaign, declaring that "selective justice is injustice."

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) announced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has approved the filing of forty-four (44) criminal tax cases against former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials Jaypee De Leon Mendoza, Henry C. Alcantara, and Brice Ericson D. Hernandez.

A new Senate majority consolidated power on Wednesday, electing Senator Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate President and ending Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s turbulent tenure at the helm of the chamber. The leadership shakeup was sealed after Senator Joel Villanueva crossed over to the emerging bloc, providing the crucial 13th vote needed to formally install Gatchalian. In a broader realignment of Senate leadership, former Senate President Vicente Sotto III was elected Senate President Pro Tempore, while Juan Miguel Zubiri took over as majority leader and chairman of the Committee on Rules, which controls the chamber’s legislative agenda. The new majority also allocated committee chairmanships, leaving the Blue Ribbon Committee now investigating the flood control controversy with Senator Erwin Tulfo.

Following the powerful earthquake that struck Southern Mindanao on 8 June 2026, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has stepped in with critical technological assistance, sharing detailed satellite data to aid response and recovery efforts.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has called Congress to a special session on June 17 to fast-track a package of priority measures and allow the Commission on Appointments (CA) to act on pending nominations to key government posts.