Pangilinan calls for Senate probe into Jolo police killing of 4 soldiers
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Francis Pangilinan on Wednesday called on the Senate to investigate the killing of four soldiers by police in Jolo, Sulu.
"This incident is disturbing because it appears that the police are quick in pulling the trigger without careful judgment. If they can do this to their fellow uniformed men, how much more to the ordinary civilians who are unarmed and defenseless?"
Although Congress' main function is legislation, it also has oversight powers on how the executive branch implements those laws.
Pangilinan pointed out that there were "at least two versions" of the encounter, with police and military accounts diverging on several details.
While police reports on the incident state that the soldiers tried to flee when apprehended, military reports counter that the soldiers identified themselves, were complying with the police and were in fact parked in front of a police vehicle when the shooting transpired.
The senator said "an independent and impartial investigation will help bring out the truth so that the victims and their families find justice."
Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay, Philippine Army commanding general, called police accounts of the encounter "fabricated, full of inconsistencies, and misleading," CNN Philippines reported.
"It's obvious that the report was whitewashed. We are furious over what happened to the army personnel — they were murdered by those policemen," Gapay added in Filipino.
As it stands, both the national police and the military have agreed to let the National Bureau of Investigation lead the probe into the incident.
In the meantime, Pangilinan urged the commanders of both parties "to rein in their men to preserve peace and avert escalation of tension between the armed personnel." Senators and former police chiefs Ronald dela Rosa and Panfilo Lacson made similar remarks following the encounter.
Lacson on Wednesday went as far as to urge Gapay to "temper his emotions."
Gapay, however, has maintained that his anger is not directed towards the national police as a whole.
"We're not generalizing the PNP here. We're talking about Jolo PNP here. Heads will roll here and those [found] liable should be punished to the max," Gapay said.
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