I offered to resign twice after Mamasapano — Roxas

MANILA, Philippines – Administration presidential candidate Manuel Roxas II yesterday disclosed that he twice offered to resign from the Cabinet as interior secretary after the Mamasapano incident in January last year.

“I did resign. I did offer my resignation, at least on two occasions. The President was surprised when I did that. Then I said: ‘Well, you know, if you have no more confidence in me…” Roxas said during a forum of the Makati Business Club at the Fairmont Hotel when asked about the incident.

Roxas made the disclosure to address the lingering issue of trust between him and President Aquino over the deaths of 44 policemen during a mission in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25, 2015.

Aquino had not informed Roxas of the operation to capture Malaysian bomb maker Julkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and his Filipino cohort Basit Usman. Marwan was killed by members of the Special Action Force in the predawn operation, but the raiders were ambushed by Muslim rebels on their way out.

When he asked the President why he was left out of the operation, Roxas said Aquino responded by saying he had ordered then Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima to inform him.

Purisima was under suspension at the time.

“You know what’s the hardest thing for me to take of Mamasapano? It’s not the snub. I don’t see it as a snub. The snub is about me. It’s that 44 guys who fought for our flag, who went in an operation where they lost their lives,” Roxas said.

The incident then dampened public support for the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law, and continued to hobble Roxas’ presidential campaign.

During the presidential debates earlier this month in Cebu, Sen. Grace Poe said Aquino simply did not trust Roxas as shown in the Mamasapano incident.

Roxas said many have tried to sow intrigue on the issue, but Aquino would not have endorsed him as the presidential candidate that would continue the administration’s daang matuwid (straight path) policies if he did not trust him.

Roxas, however, stressed he is no Aquino stooge nor was he being loyal for political expediency.