20 senators sign report holding Noy responsible

MANILA, Philippines - Twenty senators have signed the 129-page Senate joint committee report that found President Aquino politically liable for the operation wherein 44 police commandos died in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

Sen. Grace Poe, chairman of the Senate joint committee that investigated the Mamasapano encounter, said a majority of the senators signed the report that also found suspended Philippine National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima and sacked Special Action Force chief Director Getulio Napeñas equally liable.

Poe said the panel is waiting for the additional attachments from senators before presenting the report once the Senate resumes session in May.

The joint panel is composed of the Senate committees on peace and order and dangerous drugs, on finance, and on peace, unity and reconciliation.

Only Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Lito Lapid and Antonio Trillanes have not signed the report.

Senate President Franklin Drilon need not sign since he is not a member of any Senate committee.

Apart from Poe, Sens. Francis Escudero, Vicente Sotto III, Sergio Osmeña III, Aquilino Pimentel III, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Alan Peter Cayetano, Nancy Binay, Ralph Recto, Pia Cayetano, Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Jinggoy Estrada, Gregorio Honasan, Ramon Revilla Jr., JV Ejercito, Loren Legarda, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Cynthia Villar, Juan Edgardo Angara and Teofisto Guingona III signed the report.

Although abroad, Ejercito signed via electronic signature.

“The Mamasapano committee report will be filed with the Senate, sponsored on the plenary by Sen. Poe, debated and approved in plenary,” Drilon said.

“I do not want to comment on the report as I do not want to preempt the senators,” Drilon added.

Estrada, in jail on plunder charges, placed a note after his signature that he will submit a separate opinion.

Sotto said he might also put in amendments, while Recto said he would submit additional observations.

Sen. Alan Cayetano said he signed with reservations since he is pushing to reopen the inquiry on issues that the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) coddled Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, who was killed by the SAF during the operation.

He said that the investigation should continue so that a more complete presentation could be provided by the Senate.

Cayetano said that the committee report was good and strong but new information continues to come out and these have to be taken into consideration.

Trillanes said that the report is incomplete and because of this he has not signed it yet.

He said that there were several details that he wanted to see in the committee report but were not included.

He said that, among others, the report should have mentioned what happened to the other SAF companies that were in the Mamasapano area.

The Senate panel disputed the claim of Malacañang and the Department of Justice (DOJ) that President Aquino had not violated the chain of command when he dealt with Purisima in the planning and execution of Operation Plan Exodus despite his suspension.

“The PNP chain of command was violated,” the report said.

Since the PNP is under the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Senate committee report said the President, as Chief Executive, exercises supervision and control over the department.

“Thus, given that the President gave the policy direction to arrest Marwan and Usman, and that he approved Oplan Exodus with full knowledge of its operational details, the Chief Executive is ultimately responsible for the success or failure of the mission,” the Senate’s findings read.

While there are claims that the PNP officials did not commit any criminal offense because they were involved in a legitimate law enforcement operation, the Senate panel said this could not be used as a defense to escape liability under the doctrine of command responsibility.

“The President should still account for having assented to the unlawful participation of PDG Purisima in Oplan Exodus,” it added.

The Senate report disagreed with the stand of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima who declared that the “chain of command” principle is not applicable to the PNP.

During the Senate hearings, De Lima maintained that the chain of command applies only to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which is headed by the President in his capacity as commander-in-chief.

Being a civilian agency, de Lima said the principle of “chain of command” and the doctrine of “command responsibility” do not apply to the PNP.

“The Committees disagree,” the report read.

“In every organization, whether in the government or the private sector, there is always a hierarchical structure through which authority is exercised. This is the essence of a ‘chain of command’,” the report added.

“While the term is often associated with the military, it has been applied to hierarchical structures in civilian government agencies and private enterprises as well,” it added.

‘Appoint permanent PNP chief’

The Senate committee also recommended to President Aquino to immediately appoint a permanent PNP chief in a bid to provide better leadership in the police force to enable the country to move on after the unfortunate death of 44 SAF commandos during the encounter with Muslim rebels in Mamasapano.

“One of the most urgent actions that the President should consider at this time is the appointment of a permanent Director General of the PNP,” the Senate report read.

Suspended PNP chief Purisima had resigned from his post after the Mamasapano debacle.

“In the appointment of the new (PNP) Director General, the President must consider worthy integrity, strong patriotism and the ability to uphold the law and the capacity to inspire the 120,000-strong police force,” according to the report of the joint committee. – With Jose Rodel Clapano, Marvin Sy