{"id":4247,"date":"2015-12-31T09:00:44","date_gmt":"2015-12-31T01:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/primer.com.ph\/staff-blog\/?p=4247"},"modified":"2016-01-04T18:01:09","modified_gmt":"2016-01-04T10:01:09","slug":"2015-philippine-newsmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/2015\/12\/31\/2015-philippine-newsmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"2015 Philippine Newsmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Another year has passed and it wouldn\u2019t be complete without summarizing all the biggest events that happened in the Philippines. Here is a list of some of the news that made it to the front page, created waves in social media, and impacted the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Papal Visit<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"pope<\/p>\n

PAPAL VISIT. Pope waves at the crowd in Tacloban. Photo by rappler.com<\/em><\/p>\n

From January 15-19, Pope Francis went to the Philippines for an Apostolic and state visit. His Holiness also paid a visit to the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban and Leyte, and celebrated mass in Manila. The 5-day event became the largest papal event to date, with the Pope\u2019s concluding mass drawing around 6-7 million attendees.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Mamasapano Clash<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"SAF44\"<\/p>\n

FALLEN 44. Members of SAF carry the coffins of their comrades upon arrival. Photo by inquirer.net<\/em><\/p>\n

A few days after the papal visit, another big news headlined the country as a police operation, which took place on January 25, led to the death of 44 members of the Special Action Force (SAF) group of the Philippine National Police (PNP). The operation was intended to capture high-ranking terrorists in Mamasapano, Maguindanao. The event was said to have been the biggest loss in government force history.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Mary Jane Veloso<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"jane<\/p>\n

SAVE MARY JANE. Veloso was arrested in Indonesia due to alleged drug smuggling. Photo by Reuters<\/em><\/p>\n

On April 29, Mary Jane Veloso was spared from execution by Indonesian firing squad after she allegedly smuggled heroin in Indonesia. The execution was suspended as a complaint was filed in the Philippines, with her recruiter surrendering to the authorities. Veloso was asked to testify as a witness to prosecuting drug syndicates.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Pacquiao vs. Mayweather<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"May

May 2, 2015; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao box during their world welterweight championship bout at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports<\/p><\/div>\n

FIGHT OF THE CENTURY. Mayweather beats Pacquiao during the World Welterweight Championship in Las Vegas. Photo by Reuters<\/em><\/p>\n

The highly-anticipated boxing match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather became a hot topic worldwide after Mayweather beat Pacman via unanimous decision. The fight dubbed as the \u2018Fight of the Century\u2019 let Mayweather continue his undefeated boxing career streak. The match was said to be the most lucrative fight ever.<\/span><\/p>\n

5. El Gamma Penumbra<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"el<\/p>\n

EL GAMMA GOT TALENT. Philippines\u2019 El Gamma Penumbra wins as the first grand winner of Asia\u2019s Got Talent. Photo by Philstar.com<\/em><\/p>\n

Yet another Filipino group made waves in the international scene, as El Gamma Penumbra became the first grand winner of Asia\u2019s Got Talent. El Gamma Penumbra was just one of the four Filipino finalists in the said talent show. They showcased their unique talent of silhouette imagery creating meaningful stories. The group won US $100,000 and an opportunity to perform at the world-renowned Marina Bay Sands.<\/span><\/p>\n

6. Iglesia Ni Cristo Controversy<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"INC\"<\/p>\n

CHURCH DIVISION. INC expelled Ka Angel and Tenny Manalo from the church due to allegedly causing church division. Photo by David Romero<\/em><\/p>\n

The third largest religious denomination in the Philippines, Iglesia ni Cristo, expelled some of its high profile ministers for allegedly \u2018sowing disunity\u2019 in the church. Angel and Tenny Manalo, members of the family which founded the church, claimed to have their lives threatened in a video uploaded on July 2015 stating that there has been a mass kidnapping going on prompting the whole controversy.<\/span><\/p>\n

7. ALDUB Phenomenon<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Alden<\/p>\n

ALDUB FEVER. Maine \u201cYaya Dub\u201d Mendoza and Alden Richards pose as they meet formally for the first time in the \u2018Tamang Panahon\u2019 event. Photo by EB Social Media<\/em><\/p>\n

Phenomenal love team AlDub (Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza) dominated worldwide trends with over 40 million tweets ever since they became accidental on screen partners in the noontime show Eat Bulaga. The love team topped national TV Ratings and has tapped the curiosity of international news agency for its record breaking attempts in social media.<\/span><\/p>\n

8. APEC Philippines 2015<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Philippines<\/p>\n

APEC 2015. World economic leaders pose for a photo at the Manila summit. Photo by AP\/Susan Walsh<\/em><\/p>\n

On November 18-19, the 23rd<\/sup> APEC Economic Leaders\u2019 Meeting was held in Pasay which was attended by various business leaders from the world. The meeting\u2019s agenda was about the growth of the Asia-Pacific region in national, regional, and macro levels. The hashtag #APEChottie also trended in social media after photos of leaders Justin Trudeau and Enrique Nieto circulated online.<\/span><\/p>\n

9. Tanim Bala Controversy<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"tanimbala\"<\/p>\n

TANIM BALA. Travellers are having their luggages wrapped in plastic to avoid the bullet planting scheme. Photo from inquirer.net<\/em><\/p>\n

In late October 2015, a recent airport incident broke the internet when an alleged bullet planting scheme transpired at NAIA when a 56-year old woman was caught allegedly carrying a bullet on her way to Hong Kong. Netizens reacted on social media regarding this issue, complaining about NAIA\u2019s poor security measures and handling of issue. This incident has prompted many locals to fear for their security at the airport, as many incidents with the same scheme followed after.<\/span><\/p>\n

10. Pia Wurtzbach<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"pia<\/p>\n

CROWNING GLORY. Pia Wurtzbach wins as Miss Universe 2015. Photo from ibtimes.co.uk<\/em><\/p>\n

After 40 years, the whole nation celebrated on December 21 as the Philippines brought home the crown for Miss Universe 2015. Pia Wurtzbach was crowned Miss Universe following Margie Moran in 1973. The pageant trended as a wrong announcement was made by the host on who won the title. Wurtzbach is the third Filipina to have won the said event.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"border3\"<\/p>\n

Article by Philippine Primer Staff
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

SOURCES:<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Inquirer.net\/PopeinPH
\nhttp:\/\/www.rappler.com\/nation\/82827-timeline-mamasapano-clash
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.interaksyon.com\/article\/108793\/janet-napoles-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-over-illegal-detention-charges
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.gmanetwork.com\/news\/story\/478106\/news\/nation\/mary-jane-veloso-spared-from-execution
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/cnnphilippines.com\/news\/2015\/07\/23\/Iglesia-ni-Cristo-expels-Manalo-siblings-mother.html1
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.gmanetwork.com\/news\/story\/480754\/sports\/boxing\/floyd-mayweather-defeats-manny-pacquiao-by-decision
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-34645078
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.philstar.com\/headlines\/2015\/11\/19\/1523672\/full-text-pnoy-opens-retreat-23rd-apec-leaders-meeting
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/cnnphilippines.com\/lifestyle\/2015\/12\/21\/miss-universe-2015-pia-wurtzbach.html
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/www.rappler.com\/technology\/social-media\/110965-laglag-bala-naia-netizens-reaction
\n<\/a><\/span>http:\/\/cnnphilippines.com\/entertainment\/2015\/05\/15\/El-Gamma-Penumbra-wins-Asias-Got-Talent-thanks-Filipinos.html<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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Another year has passed and it wouldn\u2019t be complete without summarizing all the biggest events that happened in the Philippines. Here is a list of some of the news that made it to the front page, created waves in social media, and impacted the world. 1. Papal Visit PAPAL VISIT. Pope waves at the crowd in Tacloban. Photo by rappler.com From January 15-19, Pope Francis went to the Philippines for an Apostolic and state visit. His Holiness also paid a visit to the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban and Leyte, and celebrated mass in Manila. The 5-day event became the largest papal event to date, with the Pope\u2019s concluding […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[95],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature-story"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/12\/aldub-e1451384828896.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4247"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4275,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4247\/revisions\/4275"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}