MARCH 2016 in the Philippines Highlights

* March 23 * Diwata-1  was launched to theInternational Space Station  (ISS) aboard the Cygnus  spacecraft on asupply mission . Cygnus itself will be launched using the Atlas V  rocket. The satellite was deployed into orbit from the ISS on April 27. Diwata-1 is the country's first micro-satellite and the first satellite to be built and designed by Filipinos.[53] * The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (under the Memorandum Circular 94) that aimed at "achieving unified action" as part of efforts to find a resolution to the country's territorial dispute with China on the West Philippine Sea  is created.[54] * March 25  – Customs at the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen  destroyed 34.78 tons of "substandard bananas" imported from the Philippines due to excessive pesticide use.[55] * March 26  – A raging fire on the Philippines highest mountain, Mt. Apo , forced hundreds of people to flee from the peak by foot.[56] * March 27  – Anonymous  Philippines has hacked the website of Commission on Elections  to force them to place security features on Vote Counting Machine (VCM).[57]  Soon, the LulzSec Pilipinas leaked  sensitive information of voters all over the Philippines from the COMELEC website, and the incident has been called the "biggest government data breach in history".[58] On April 21 , one of the hackers involved in the recent defacement and supposed leak of data from the Commission on Elections' official website has been arrested in Sampaloc, Manila.[59]  On April 29 , another hacker allegedly responsible for leaking the information of voters from the Comelec website was arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation.[60] * March 28 * Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) general manager Neric Acosta has been sentenced to a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment after being found guilty of one count of graft by the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division in connection with the misuse of his pork barrel funds as district representative of Bukidnon.[61] * None of the three pre-qualified bidders have submitted offers for the largest Private-Public Partnership (PPP) project to date, the Laguna Lakeshore Expressway estimated to cost around P123 billion.[62] * Several piles of license plate sheets were stolen from the Quezon City central office of the Land Transportation Office during the Holy Week break.[63] * March 29 * Ten Indonesian crew members on board a tugboat were kidnapped byAbu Sayyaf  militants in the Philippines.[64]  On May 1 , ten Indonesian sailors who had been held hostage by Islamist militant group were released in Jolo.[65] * President Aquino has signed Republic Act No. 10754 into law a bill authored by Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez  granting persons with disabilities (PWDs) exemption from the 12-percent value-added tax  (VAT) on certain goods and services.[66] * The Commission on Elections has decided not to stop the broadcast of senatorial candidate Manny Pacquiao's boxing match on April 9.[67] * March 30  – The Office of the Ombudsman filed graft and technical malversation cases against Sen. JV Ejercito , before the Sandiganbayan over the alleged anomalous purchase of high-powered firearms worth P2.1 million during his term as mayor of San Juan City.[68]