Palace: Noy need not apologize for Mamasapano blunder

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang believes President Aquino need not apologize for the bungled police operation that left 44 commandos dead in Mamasapano, Maguindanao last Jan. 25.

Speaking to reporters, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Aquino’s instructions to then suspended Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Alan Purisima and then Special Action Force commander Director Getulio Napeñas to coordinate with the military have not been complied with.

“No, the fault there is: Were the instructions carried out?” he asked.

“The President does not involve himself in the building of bridges or in the operation of neutralizing a terrorist.

“So how does one say that one should investigate, for instance, lapses in either a construction of building or the death of the – or the result of an operation. Those are all operational levels.”

Lacierda said the President deals on the policy level to fight terrorism.

“On the operational level, how the operation was conducted, certainly there were lapses,” he said.

“How does one answer that where… You want a categorical answer?”

Lacierda said the President always harps on the policy, and nothing is irregular in that.

“In fact, it should be a policy for our country to fight terrorism,” he said.

Lacierda said the government’s policy is to promote public infrastructure and a government-built bridge suddenly collapses, and workers die in the process.

“I think that’s fair enough for us to conclude where the lapses are committed,” he said.

Witnesses interviewed

Speaking to reporters, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said government prosecutors and National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents have interviewed witnesses to the slaughter of 44 police commandos following a clash with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Mamasapano, Maguindanao last Jan. 25.

“We were able to access very, very vital witnesses and their statements were already taken,” she said. “This is a big development, but we cannot disclose yet their statements because the investigation is still ongoing.” 

De Lima did not confirm or deny reports that among the witnesses is a veteran MILF guerrilla close to slain    terrorist bomber Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and fugitive terrorist Basit Usman.

“What I can only confirm is that these are very vital witnesses, but we cannot divulge yet their identities at this point,” she said.

The witnesses reportedly can identify the MILF fighters who took part in the slaughter of the 44 police commandos.

De Lima said the prosecutors and NBI agents were not able to make an ocular inspection of the crime scene due to the fighting between government troops and BIFF.

They plan to go back to Mamasapano to gather more witnesses and make an ocular inspection after the military gives them the go-signal, she added.

De Lima said the Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation will cover the reported burning of the hut where Marwan was killed.

They will determine if a case for obstruction of justice could be filed against those behind the burning of the hut, she added.

De Lima said the burning of the hut was most probably deliberate.

“Of course, the first questions would be: who burned it and why?” she said.

De Lima said the hut could have provided information useful in the investigation.

However, the burning of the hut would not jeopardize or hinder the cases being prepared, she added.

Ferrer cautions De Lima

Chief government peace negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer has cautioned De Lima against issuing “tidbits of information” to the media on the DOJ’s investigation on the Mamasapano shootout.

Speaking to reporters in Mabini, Batangas, Coronel said it would be better for the DOJ to wait until the termination of the investigation before releasing any information.

“If evidence is already in the hands of the NBI or DOJ, let us wait and see how they will pull together all the different evidence,” she said. “We might as well wait for the results of the investigation so we won’t be disoriented.” 

Ferrer criticized the DOJ’s releasing of information that it has a witness who could identify the Moro Islamic Liberation Front fighters in the clash that left 44 police commandos and 18 MILF fighters dead.

“We really need prudence in how these tidbits of information are coming out,” especially because of security considerations, she said.” “This might unnecessarily endanger certain individuals at the same time the biases and the misinformation are reinforced.” – With Edu Punay, Mike Frialde, Cecille Suerte Felipe