By Gil C. Cabacungan, Philippine Daily Inquirer

In what could be a test of its political clout, emissaries of the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) have been working behind the scenes to try and sway senator-judges to acquit impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona, a legislative source said on Friday.

The impeachment trial is expected to reach its high point on Tuesday when the country’s highest magistrate is scheduled to testify and answer allegations against him, including his supposed failure to fully disclose in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) how much he really owns.

by David Dizon, ABS-CBNnews.com

The heads of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Civil Service Commission (CSC) on Friday said all public officials, including Chief Justice Renato Corona, must declare their dollars as part of their cash in bank in their statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).

In an exclusive interview, BIR Commissioner Kim Henares denied the statement of a former BIR official who said Corona need not declare his foreign currency deposits because it would violate the Tax Code of the Philippines.

by Rodney Jaleco, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau

Philippine Armed Forces chief Gen. Jessie Dellosa will formally accept delivery of the US Coast Guard high-endurance cutter USCGC Dallas in Charleston, South Carolina on Tuesday (May 22).

Dellosa will stay overnight here on Monday before flying to Charleston the next day. He will be met there by Rear Admiral Jose Luis Alano, Philippine Fleet commander, who is arriving there a day ahead.

By MARK MERUEÑAS, GMA News

The defense panel on Friday said the number of dollar accounts being attributed to impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona should only be three, not 82 as reported by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales when she testified early this week before the Senate impeachment court.

"The Ombudsman testified and said 82 dollar accounts exist," defense lawyer and spokesperson Tranquil Salvador III told reporters in a press conference, “pero iyong 82 na iyon, kung susuriin… ay tatlo o apat lang.

By Reynaldo Belen, InterAKTV

A planned exhibition match between a PBA selection and a Chinese team owned by NBA star Yao Ming has Manila and Beijing hoping to build up some goodwill after weeks of tension over the Scarborough Shoal.

The Philippine government welcomed the announcement of the upcoming exhibition - brokered by the two countries' respective sports authorities - as "a gesture of goodwill".

By Jamie Elona, INQUIRER.net

Panamanian national Erick Bairnals Shcks, who has been accused raping a Filipina, finally broke his silence Friday, claiming that he and his supposed victim engaged in “consensual sex”.

At the same time, Shcks said that the Filipina, who goes by the alias “Pamela”, had lied to him. Shcks issued the statement a week after he left the Philippines “in a shameful way”.

By Kristine L. Alave, Philippine Daily Inquirer

The transfer of the Hacienda Luisita sugar plantation from the Cojuangco clan to the farming families that had tilled it for decades began on Friday.

Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes and about 120 employees of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) traveled to Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac province to explain the land reform process to the farmers and notify them of the dates of their interviews with the DAR for the transfer of land to them.

By GENALYN D. KABILING, Manila Bulletin

Embattled Chief Justice Renato Corona should wait for the verdict of the Senate impeachment court before voicing confidence of an acquittal, according to a Palace official.

Deputy Presidential Spokewoman Abigail Valte even hinted that Corona's chances of acquittal were slim since he failed to disclose his supposed multi-million-dollar bank deposits in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN).

By Perseus Echeminada (The Philippine Star)

Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has no plans to file a motion before the Pasay City Regional Trial Court (RTC) to seek medical treatment abroad.

Benjamin Santos, Arroyo’s legal counsel, told The STAR he was surprised at published reports that Arroyo needs to be treated outside the country. “We are not filing any motion to allow the former President to leave the country,” he said. “There is no pending motion in court.”