Gerard Butler enters ‘Den Of Thieves’

Gerard Butler as Detective Nick ‘Big Nick’ O’Brien

Gerard Butler’s latest action thriller movie, “Den Of Thieves,” is on its second week of showing, courtesy of Viva International Pictures and MVP Entertainment.

Set in contemporary Los Angeles, “Den Of Thieves” is a crime saga which follows the intersecting and often personally connected lives of the Regulators, an elite unit of the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department; and the Outlaws, the state’s most successful bank robbery crew.

The Regulators is led by alpha dog “Big Nick” O’Brien played by Gerard (“Olympus Has Fallen,” “300”). The Outlaws is led by the icy and calm Ray Merriman played by Pablo Schreiber (“13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi”).

Writer and director Christian Gudegast was reading “Where The Money Is,” a nonfiction book about how Los Angeles became the bank robbery capital of the world, when he saw a photo in the Los Angeles Times; the photo, taken at the Federal Reserve Bank, was of a massive tub of money. The photo and the book sparked an idea, and Christian wrote the story that would eventually become the basis for the screenplay of “Den Of Thieves.”

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More revelations on ‘Kambal, Karibal’

Carmina Villaroel

Now that Geraldine (Carmina Villaroel) has found out the truth, that Crisan (Bianca Umali), the girl she wants to be jailed for thinking she had caused her daughter Cheska (Kyline Alcantara) many sufferings, is really her daughter, she wants to make up for making her life miserable in the past.

But what Geraldine doesn’t know is that the Crisan she thinks is her daughter is actually Crisan’s twin, Crisel, who has invaded Crisan’s body.

So, now that Allan (Alfred Vargas) has been told that Crisan is his and Geraldine’s daughter and not Teresa’s (Jean Garcia), will he break up with Teresa who is actually Raymond’s (Marvin Agustin) cousin?

“Kambal, Karibal,” also stars Miguel Tanfelix and Christopher de Leon among others. The series airs weekdays after “Sherlock Jr.” on GMA Telebabad.

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Tidbits: Happy b-day greetings today, March 20, go to Dessa, Waldy Carbonel, Josie Saddul, Nellie Yap, Ronnie Tabora, Arnel Martin, Nenette Young, Theresa Lizardo, Bob Serrano, Amy de Guzman, Carol Bautista, Maridol Bismark and Badette Cunanan…March 21: Gabby Singson, Francis Sacay, Ben Pangilinan, Estela Nabong, Venus Robinson, Junne Quintana, Mon Crespo, Len Aligayo, Mymy Alino Mariano, Carmita Francisco, Roland Anthony Tan, Ben Tan, Democrito Ngujo, Engr. Jun Nacar, Luis Cimafranca, Razel Mae Libot, Rev. Fr. Jonathan Lao, RJ Piquero and Lotlot de Leon…

Senate approves bill converting Batangas town into component city

The Senate today approved on third and final reading a bill converting the municipality of Sto. Tomas in the province of Batangas into a component city.

House Bill No. 5160 was sponsored by Senator Sonny Angara, chair of the Senate Committee on Local Government, and was passed with 19 affirmative votes and zero negative votes.

"Like the national hero Miguel Malvar, a native of this town and among the first of countless Filipino revolutionaries, Sto. Tomas is also leading the way towards progress among local government units," Angara said.

Angara said that the "thriving" town of Sto. Tomas was one of most populous in the whole country, and clearly met the population requirement indicated by the Local Government Code.

"The Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) has certified the municipality's average annual income at more than P230 million, which is also well above the require amount for conversion," he said.

Angara noted that Sto. Tomas hosts a 600-megawatt solar panel factory, the first of its kind in the country, and a multinational paints supplier factory that would produce paints for many industries.

"If we provide enough resources for flourishing towns like Sto. Tomas, then more Filipinos are given the chance to relish this bountifulness," he said.

According to Angara, a great part of national development is dependent "on the quality and capacity of the country's local government units."

"Our national government agencies have drawn economic plans that entail the expansion of the economy outside urbanized cities to dissipate concentrated gains. But to accomplish this goal requires solid foundations, not just of the national agencies, but also of our local governments," he concluded.

A municipality or a cluster of barangays may be converted into a component city if it has an average annual income of at least P100 million in the last two consecutive years based on 2000 constant prices and either a population of at least 150,000 inhabitants or a contiguous territory of 100 square kilometers.