Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casio yesterday said the big-time car smuggling mafia in Cebu involves top-level officials in Metro Manila.

In yesterdays hearing of the House committee on good government, Casio presented documents obtained by Bayan Munas Central Visayas chapter from sources in the Land Transportation Office central office showing 40 plate numbers of late model luxury cars and sports utility vehicles, including 2 Lexus 2007 models, 5 BMWs, 3 Range Rovers, 6 Mercedes Benzes, 2 GMC Explorers, 5 Toyota Land Cruisers 2007 models, 2 Toyota 2007 Prados, a Porsche Cayenne and a Ford Mustang, that were registered from August 2006 to July 2007 had plate numbers issued by the LTO office in Diliman.

Under existing LTO rules, license plates should be issued and released by the same district office where the vehicles are originally registered.

No more excuses for a half-empty Redbird Arena

Boo Richardson crossed midcourt and flung the ball skyward, seemingly toward the second tier of seats. Osiris Eldridge soared in from the right side of the basket and got his hands on the high-arching pass. Unable to catch it cleanly, Eldridge's makeshift shot bounced off the rim, and teammate Brandon Sampay put in the rebound at the halftime buzzer. It was nearly a spectacular alley-oop dunk worthy of ESPN's nightly “Top 10." Pull it off, and Eldridge and Richardson would have brought half of Redbird Arena to its feet. Why half?

Miracle kid who owes his life to city medics

However, against all the odds he survived four or five days of chemotherapy every week for nine months, during which time he barely left the hospital. Dr Wallace called him his "miracle kid". Undergoing such treatment has left Joshua with severe kidney and stomach problems that have already required one major operation and will need more. He is desperate for services to remain in Edinburgh. Gaynor added: "The hospital means the world to us." .

Mid-Valley briefs

Mid-Valley briefs from Tuesday's paper. Colusa Anti-gang meeting at casino "From Survival to Success," a conference focusing on at-risk youth and alternate gang prevention approaches, will be held Wednesday at the Colusa Casino conference room. Admission is free. The business is at 3770 Highway 45 in Colusa. Planned from 4 to 6 p.m., the event features speaker Francisco Reveles, a professor at California State University, Sacramento. An expert on at-risk youth, gangs and gang prevention, he will look specifically at Yuba, Sutter and Colusa counties, including the most recent research. Sponsors include Woodland Community College, Yuba College, Colusa County Office of Education and Colusa County Native American Education Commission. Yuba City Fruit tree sale Saturday More than 500 various fruit trees are featured in the annual Fruit Tree Sale hosted by the Parents Club of St.

Impressive Rangers rise to summit

The tragedy consumed life in the country far beyond the football world. On Wednesday the Tannadice club had their request to postpone Wednesday's encounter with Hearts denied by the Scottish Premier League. On Friday, the entire United squad attended O'Donnell's funeral in Hamilton. Barry Ferguson was one of the countless luminaries of the Scottish game who also attended, and, as a fellow resident of the Lanarkshire town, was personally affected by O'Donnell's passing. Yesterday he added his own poignant tributes to the emotional outpouring witnessed this week. At the request of the O'Donnell family, his captain's armband was marked out with the Motherwell crest and a No.10 in honour of the 35-year-old, whom he spoke warmly of in his programme notes. "Like me, Phil was a Hamilton lad and because of that, I got to know him well over the years," he said.

Lekota: 'I have learned a hard lesson'

Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota was on Friday sentenced to a R5 000 fine or 12 months' imprisonment for reckless and negligent driving. Wearing a dark suit, glasses with gold frames and accompanied by his bodyguard, Lekota pleaded guilty to exceeding the national speed limit. Last Sunday, at 10.44pm, Lekota was arrested for driving at 189km/h in a 120km/h zone near Grasmere toll plaza on the N1 North. He was released on R1 000 bail. In a statement read by the defence, Lekota said he admitted that what he had done was wrong. He also said he admitted he had set a bad example as a minister and felt "intense remorse". "I have learned a hard lesson," he said in the statement. Lekota then took the witness stand at the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court. He told the court that on the night of his arrest for speeding, he was travelling home from a funeral in the southern Free State, where he had spent most of the day.