By Ronron
March 28, 2008
Thirteen people, including two infants and two toddlers, went missing since Wednesday after the pump boat they were riding off Sarangani province in Davao del Sur province capsized due to rough seas.
According to a report of the Region XI Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC), the sea mishap happened at around 3pm of March 26, involving motorized banca “Judi Ann.” The victims remain missing as of Friday evening.
The report said the vessel, loaded with 14 persons including the operator, was sailing from Barangay Camalig to Barangay Camual, both of Sarangani Municipality, located on Sarangani Island.
The passengers of the ill-fated vessel were supposedly going to attend a wedding at Barangay Camual.
Because of big waves allegedly caused by strong winds, the pump boat capsized at the vicinity of two nautical miles off Barangay Camalig.
Of the 14 people aboard it, only one survived, identified as Ranilo Ulivo, 26, who swam his way to the shore and reported the incident to authorities.
The 13 others missing were identified as Alandro de Arce, Sr., 37, the boat operator; Judith de Arce, 37; Alandro de Arce, 18; Dianne de Arce, 16; Nene Kiawan, 55; Edna Kiawan, 39; Jeffrey Kiawan, 13; Remart Kiawan 4; Dennis Kiawan, 1; Ambert Kiawan, 11; Jennifer Galas, 21; Morjone Galas, 3; and, Jayjay Galas, eight-months-old.
The RDCC report said search and rescue attempts in the area by Coast Guard elements and local fishing boasts are occasionally hampered by big waves due to prevailing bad weather.
The RDCC said the Philippine Air Force had already been tapped to join the search and rescue operations./DMS
Friday, March 28, 2008
Air Force continues search for two missing pilots off Palawan
By Ronron
March 28, 2008
The Philippine Air Force (PAF) has not given up in its search operations for its two pilots who remain missing after their AS-211 jet failed to be located in November 2007 while conducting maritime patrol mission over the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) off Palawan province.
PAF commander Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog told reporters Friday at Villamor Airbase in Pasay City that they remain hopeful Captains Gabino Mercado, Jr. and Bonifacio Soriano III will be found.
“Every day, we conduct search missions in the area. Unfortunately, we still haven’t found them,” Cadungog said.
Cadungog said they do not make presumptions whether or not the two are already dead, citing the seven-year legal prescription for presuming missing people as dead.
“We don’t even think of presumptions. We don’t presume them to be dead, until we reach the seventh year. That’s the legal prescription,” he explained.
Mercado and Soriano were flying an AS-211 last November 26, 2007 over the Spratly’s to assist in the search operations for possible survivors of a sunken fishing vessel in the area.
But unlike their buddy AS-211, they failed to return to Puerto Princesa City in mainland Palawan.
Cadungog assured that they continue to attend to the needs of the families of Mercado and Soriano “in these trying times.”
“The commanders of those particular pilots are regularly attending to the needs and requirements of their families,” he said./DMS
March 28, 2008
The Philippine Air Force (PAF) has not given up in its search operations for its two pilots who remain missing after their AS-211 jet failed to be located in November 2007 while conducting maritime patrol mission over the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) off Palawan province.
PAF commander Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog told reporters Friday at Villamor Airbase in Pasay City that they remain hopeful Captains Gabino Mercado, Jr. and Bonifacio Soriano III will be found.
“Every day, we conduct search missions in the area. Unfortunately, we still haven’t found them,” Cadungog said.
Cadungog said they do not make presumptions whether or not the two are already dead, citing the seven-year legal prescription for presuming missing people as dead.
“We don’t even think of presumptions. We don’t presume them to be dead, until we reach the seventh year. That’s the legal prescription,” he explained.
Mercado and Soriano were flying an AS-211 last November 26, 2007 over the Spratly’s to assist in the search operations for possible survivors of a sunken fishing vessel in the area.
But unlike their buddy AS-211, they failed to return to Puerto Princesa City in mainland Palawan.
Cadungog assured that they continue to attend to the needs of the families of Mercado and Soriano “in these trying times.”
“The commanders of those particular pilots are regularly attending to the needs and requirements of their families,” he said./DMS
Air Force chief echoes Esperon and Vice Navy chief’s admission of weak military power to protect Spratly’s
By Ronron
March 28, 2008
Another ranking official of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday admitted that its force may not be as strong as of other countries that are claiming ownership in part or in whole over the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) or the Spratly’s in the South China Sea off Palawan province.
Like AFP chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. and Philippine Navy vice commander Rear Admiral Amable Tolentino, Philippine Air Force (PAF) chief Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog said yesterday that the Philippine military can only boast of its human resources, particularly their determination to fight, in terms of defending Philippine territory.
“Warm bodies. If we die, we die. That’s how simple our mission is,” Cadungog said when asked by reporters at Villamor Airbase, the PAF headquarters, in Pasay City on how they can defend Spratly’s.
The AFP has effectively lost its capability to address external threats when it decommissioned its F5 fighter planes in October 2005.
At present, the organization only banks on its AS-211 as alternative to the F5.
The capability to defend Spratly’s was revived recently after the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) over said area between the Philippines, Vietnam and China was exposed.
The oil-rich and marine life-abundant KIG is a subject of contention by Philippines, China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan.
“While it has already been pronounced by the chief of staff that it is really difficult to defend (the Spratly’s), it’s very near impossible that we can claim sovereignty. But as far as we are concerned, being truly Filipino and understanding what is sovereignty, we offer our service and our lives over that part of our country,” Cadungog said.
“Whether we like it or not, if they are saying that we have a problem there against another country – probably getting into our territory or intruding to our own occupied lands, then of course, we have to defend. That’s just how it is, no matter how lacking we are in our defense capabilities,” he added.
But Cadungog disclosed that the PAF is not stopping in its effort to improve its fleet for internal defense.
He said that in July of this year, 15 units of T41 trainer aircraft from South Korea will arrive in the country.
“This will be a big help to our training capabilities,” Cadungog said of the donation.
In the first quarter next year, 18 units of SF-260 (Marquetti) will also be acquired by PAF, worth P622 million, from Italy.
Cadungog said this will be used in their pilots’ “advance training.”/DMS
March 28, 2008
Another ranking official of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday admitted that its force may not be as strong as of other countries that are claiming ownership in part or in whole over the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) or the Spratly’s in the South China Sea off Palawan province.
Like AFP chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. and Philippine Navy vice commander Rear Admiral Amable Tolentino, Philippine Air Force (PAF) chief Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog said yesterday that the Philippine military can only boast of its human resources, particularly their determination to fight, in terms of defending Philippine territory.
“Warm bodies. If we die, we die. That’s how simple our mission is,” Cadungog said when asked by reporters at Villamor Airbase, the PAF headquarters, in Pasay City on how they can defend Spratly’s.
The AFP has effectively lost its capability to address external threats when it decommissioned its F5 fighter planes in October 2005.
At present, the organization only banks on its AS-211 as alternative to the F5.
The capability to defend Spratly’s was revived recently after the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) over said area between the Philippines, Vietnam and China was exposed.
The oil-rich and marine life-abundant KIG is a subject of contention by Philippines, China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan.
“While it has already been pronounced by the chief of staff that it is really difficult to defend (the Spratly’s), it’s very near impossible that we can claim sovereignty. But as far as we are concerned, being truly Filipino and understanding what is sovereignty, we offer our service and our lives over that part of our country,” Cadungog said.
“Whether we like it or not, if they are saying that we have a problem there against another country – probably getting into our territory or intruding to our own occupied lands, then of course, we have to defend. That’s just how it is, no matter how lacking we are in our defense capabilities,” he added.
But Cadungog disclosed that the PAF is not stopping in its effort to improve its fleet for internal defense.
He said that in July of this year, 15 units of T41 trainer aircraft from South Korea will arrive in the country.
“This will be a big help to our training capabilities,” Cadungog said of the donation.
In the first quarter next year, 18 units of SF-260 (Marquetti) will also be acquired by PAF, worth P622 million, from Italy.
Cadungog said this will be used in their pilots’ “advance training.”/DMS
PNP goes on full alert, AFP on heightened alert for NPA anniversary
By Ronron
March 28, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) goes on full alert while the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is on heightened alert Friday night in preparation for the 39th anniversary of the New People’s Army (NPA) on Saturday.
PNP spokesman Sr. Supt. Nicanor Bartolome said the highest alert level of all police forces nationwide takes effect 6pm. The same goes for the alert level of the AFP nationwide, said Brig. Gen. Roland Detabali, the military’s Deputy Chief for Operations.
“We are on alert because normally, they (NPA) conduct intensified operations on their anniversary,” Detabali said in a phone interview yesterday afternoon.
“Historically, the NPA has been known to launch armed hostilities and tactical offensives against soft targets and other targets of opportunity as their way of commemorating their anniversary,” PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said in a separate statement.
While there is no direct threat of an attack by the NPA, PNP Director for Operations Chief Supt. Silverio Alarcio, Jr., in a memorandum circulated among all regional offices and national support units, said: “There is a possibility that the NPA might launch terrorist acts against less secure police and military outposts, and vulnerable government installations including some business establishments and other soft targets.”
Putting the entire police force on the highest alert goes along with instructions for them to “implement counter-measures and precautionary plans, intensify intelligence operations to preempt and anticipate terrorist actions, establish listening posts, and mobilize Barangay Information Networks.”
Under a full alert status, all policemen are expected to be on duty, while under a heightened alert level, only 50 percent are expected to be in camps.
The NPA’s political arm, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), said yesterday in a statement that it will mark its 39th anniversary with a celebration for their various successful operations in the last year.
“Even before the current NPA anniversary, we were already able to launch more than 500 major and minor tactical offensives against government forces,” the CPP said.
“It has been able to increase the number of NPA units as a result of the seizure of weapons from the enemy and the progress of mass work. It has been able to maintain 120-130 guerilla fronts and to expand and upgrade most of them,” it added.
The CPP said “it is now in a position to increase the number of guerilla fronts.”
“We can reap victories by continuing to seize the initiative and launching far more tactical offensives against the enemy last year,” it said./DMS
March 28, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) goes on full alert while the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is on heightened alert Friday night in preparation for the 39th anniversary of the New People’s Army (NPA) on Saturday.
PNP spokesman Sr. Supt. Nicanor Bartolome said the highest alert level of all police forces nationwide takes effect 6pm. The same goes for the alert level of the AFP nationwide, said Brig. Gen. Roland Detabali, the military’s Deputy Chief for Operations.
“We are on alert because normally, they (NPA) conduct intensified operations on their anniversary,” Detabali said in a phone interview yesterday afternoon.
“Historically, the NPA has been known to launch armed hostilities and tactical offensives against soft targets and other targets of opportunity as their way of commemorating their anniversary,” PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said in a separate statement.
While there is no direct threat of an attack by the NPA, PNP Director for Operations Chief Supt. Silverio Alarcio, Jr., in a memorandum circulated among all regional offices and national support units, said: “There is a possibility that the NPA might launch terrorist acts against less secure police and military outposts, and vulnerable government installations including some business establishments and other soft targets.”
Putting the entire police force on the highest alert goes along with instructions for them to “implement counter-measures and precautionary plans, intensify intelligence operations to preempt and anticipate terrorist actions, establish listening posts, and mobilize Barangay Information Networks.”
Under a full alert status, all policemen are expected to be on duty, while under a heightened alert level, only 50 percent are expected to be in camps.
The NPA’s political arm, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), said yesterday in a statement that it will mark its 39th anniversary with a celebration for their various successful operations in the last year.
“Even before the current NPA anniversary, we were already able to launch more than 500 major and minor tactical offensives against government forces,” the CPP said.
“It has been able to increase the number of NPA units as a result of the seizure of weapons from the enemy and the progress of mass work. It has been able to maintain 120-130 guerilla fronts and to expand and upgrade most of them,” it added.
The CPP said “it is now in a position to increase the number of guerilla fronts.”
“We can reap victories by continuing to seize the initiative and launching far more tactical offensives against the enemy last year,” it said./DMS
AFP bares plan to improve runway at Pag-asa Island
By Ronron
March 28, 2008
An Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) official bared on Friday a plan to improve the runway of Pag-asa Island in the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) in Palawan province.
Philippine Air Force (PAF) chief Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog told reporters at the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City that the plan would have started last February had the private contractor not backed out.
Cadungog said the project to “harden the surface” of the runway of the Rancudo Airfield, which is worth P31 million, was awarded to a private firm, which he refuses to identify.
“Unfortunately, even before the contractor – who already signed the contract – they can perform the work, they backed out and claim that they cannot do it unless the amount to 100-something-million-pesos. So, that’s unfair to us,” Cadungog said.
Cadungog said the Filipino firm actually paid already a P3.1-million performance bond for the project, but was forfeited because of its backing out.
Because of the setback, Cadungog said the hauling of the materials will have to start only next month from Palawan mainland, courtesy of Philippine Navy ships, “if weather permits.”
He said that the original plan is to complete the project in six months.
Cadungog said the repair will be carried out by soldiers from the Western Command in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan and those stationed at Pag-asa Island.
Asked what benefit will this repair give to the AFP, Cadungog said: “We can avoid unsafe landing condition for our C130.”
Pressed if this is strengthening the Philippine’s position in the Spratly’s, he said: “Not necessarily strengthening, but providing our presence.”
The Air Force chief denied that the project is in violation of the existing Code of Conduct among claimant countries, saying that “we are the legitimate claimant.”
“They (other claimant territories) can’t complain about it,” he said.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr. echoed the same statement.
“It’s just an improvement of facilities and infrastructure that are existing already so we don’t see it as an aggravating factor,” Teodoro told reporters in a separate interview at the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City later in the day.
Meanwhile, Cadungog said the Air Force leadership is now thinking of possible penalties to the private firm that backed out from the project, such as blacklisting it in future projects.
Aside from the runway, Cadungog said they also plan to refurbish the billeting barracks of their troops at Pag-asa Island.
Teodoro said these improvements are “essential for those who inhibit the island.”
There are about 30 military elements on the island, coming from the Air Force, Navy and Army.
“Definitely, we will improve their quarters. I was informed that the Air Force billeting there is already dilapidated so I immediately ordered for an estimate of the building materials… This is one thing that I cannot afford to neglect,” Cadungog said.
Barangay Pag-asa is part of the oil-rich and marine life-abundant KIG that is a subject of contention by Philippines, China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. But Kalayaan has since been a municipality of Palawan in1978 when then President Ferdinand Marcos signed Presidential Decree 1956.
The issue on the Spratly’s was revived recently after the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) in the area between the Philippines, Vietnam and China was exposed./DMS
March 28, 2008
An Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) official bared on Friday a plan to improve the runway of Pag-asa Island in the Kalayaan Group of Islands (KIG) in Palawan province.
Philippine Air Force (PAF) chief Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog told reporters at the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City that the plan would have started last February had the private contractor not backed out.
Cadungog said the project to “harden the surface” of the runway of the Rancudo Airfield, which is worth P31 million, was awarded to a private firm, which he refuses to identify.
“Unfortunately, even before the contractor – who already signed the contract – they can perform the work, they backed out and claim that they cannot do it unless the amount to 100-something-million-pesos. So, that’s unfair to us,” Cadungog said.
Cadungog said the Filipino firm actually paid already a P3.1-million performance bond for the project, but was forfeited because of its backing out.
Because of the setback, Cadungog said the hauling of the materials will have to start only next month from Palawan mainland, courtesy of Philippine Navy ships, “if weather permits.”
He said that the original plan is to complete the project in six months.
Cadungog said the repair will be carried out by soldiers from the Western Command in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan and those stationed at Pag-asa Island.
Asked what benefit will this repair give to the AFP, Cadungog said: “We can avoid unsafe landing condition for our C130.”
Pressed if this is strengthening the Philippine’s position in the Spratly’s, he said: “Not necessarily strengthening, but providing our presence.”
The Air Force chief denied that the project is in violation of the existing Code of Conduct among claimant countries, saying that “we are the legitimate claimant.”
“They (other claimant territories) can’t complain about it,” he said.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr. echoed the same statement.
“It’s just an improvement of facilities and infrastructure that are existing already so we don’t see it as an aggravating factor,” Teodoro told reporters in a separate interview at the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City later in the day.
Meanwhile, Cadungog said the Air Force leadership is now thinking of possible penalties to the private firm that backed out from the project, such as blacklisting it in future projects.
Aside from the runway, Cadungog said they also plan to refurbish the billeting barracks of their troops at Pag-asa Island.
Teodoro said these improvements are “essential for those who inhibit the island.”
There are about 30 military elements on the island, coming from the Air Force, Navy and Army.
“Definitely, we will improve their quarters. I was informed that the Air Force billeting there is already dilapidated so I immediately ordered for an estimate of the building materials… This is one thing that I cannot afford to neglect,” Cadungog said.
Barangay Pag-asa is part of the oil-rich and marine life-abundant KIG that is a subject of contention by Philippines, China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. But Kalayaan has since been a municipality of Palawan in1978 when then President Ferdinand Marcos signed Presidential Decree 1956.
The issue on the Spratly’s was revived recently after the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) in the area between the Philippines, Vietnam and China was exposed./DMS
RP to rely on US FBI test on alleged remains of Dulmatin
By Ronron
March 26, 2008
Philippine authorities are not yet losing hope that they could confirm the death of Indonesian bomber through the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) test conducted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on tissue samples from a cadaver recovered in Tawi-tawi last February.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. told reporters Wednesday that while the PNP Crime Laboratory failed to generate DNA profile from the same tissue samples due to their not-so-modern machine, the US has yet to release the result of the same analysis they made.
“That is just as far as the testing of the PNP Crime Laboratory. But let us bear in mind that the FBI has taken samples and brought them to their facilities for DNA testing,” Razon said.
Razon said the US FBI took tissue samples at the same time that the PNP Crime Laboratory did after the body was exhumed on February 18 in Barangay Balimbing, Panglima Sugala town.
The body was said to belong to a rebel who died in an encounter against Marine troopers last January 31 in the said town. The bandits were believed to be Abu Sayyaf elements who were responsible for the abduction attempt and murder of Fr. Rey Roda, head of the Notre Dame School in said province.
Razon said he is hopeful that there will be results from the US FBI because the latter uses mitochondrial machine.
He said there is no longer a similar test done at the Australian Federal Police as “due respect to the FBI study.”
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. said in a separate interview that he hopes to get a feedback on the study from United States Ambassador to Manila Kristie Kenney who is now in the United States and from officials of the US Pacific Command.
Esperon said that if the test turns negative, “I’m happy to say that it’s one terrorist less that we are hunting and fighting.”
“If it’s not Dulmatin, then we will go on looking for Dulmatin,” he said.
Dulmatin is wanted for his alleged involvement in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back, killing more than a hundred persons.
The US has offered a $10-million reward to those who could provide information that would lead to Dulmatin’s neutralization.
Dulmatin, along with fellow Indonesian bomber Umar Pater, reportedly entered the Philippines in 2003./DMS
March 26, 2008
Philippine authorities are not yet losing hope that they could confirm the death of Indonesian bomber through the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) test conducted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on tissue samples from a cadaver recovered in Tawi-tawi last February.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. told reporters Wednesday that while the PNP Crime Laboratory failed to generate DNA profile from the same tissue samples due to their not-so-modern machine, the US has yet to release the result of the same analysis they made.
“That is just as far as the testing of the PNP Crime Laboratory. But let us bear in mind that the FBI has taken samples and brought them to their facilities for DNA testing,” Razon said.
Razon said the US FBI took tissue samples at the same time that the PNP Crime Laboratory did after the body was exhumed on February 18 in Barangay Balimbing, Panglima Sugala town.
The body was said to belong to a rebel who died in an encounter against Marine troopers last January 31 in the said town. The bandits were believed to be Abu Sayyaf elements who were responsible for the abduction attempt and murder of Fr. Rey Roda, head of the Notre Dame School in said province.
Razon said he is hopeful that there will be results from the US FBI because the latter uses mitochondrial machine.
He said there is no longer a similar test done at the Australian Federal Police as “due respect to the FBI study.”
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. said in a separate interview that he hopes to get a feedback on the study from United States Ambassador to Manila Kristie Kenney who is now in the United States and from officials of the US Pacific Command.
Esperon said that if the test turns negative, “I’m happy to say that it’s one terrorist less that we are hunting and fighting.”
“If it’s not Dulmatin, then we will go on looking for Dulmatin,” he said.
Dulmatin is wanted for his alleged involvement in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back, killing more than a hundred persons.
The US has offered a $10-million reward to those who could provide information that would lead to Dulmatin’s neutralization.
Dulmatin, along with fellow Indonesian bomber Umar Pater, reportedly entered the Philippines in 2003./DMS
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Active and ex-cops killed, another one hurt in Cavite shootout
By Ronron
March 27, 2008
An active and a former cop were killed while another one was hurt in a shootout incident Wednesday afternoon in Cavite province, an official said Thursday.
Sr. Supt. Fidel Posadas, provincial police chief, said the incident happened starting 4:30 pm of March 26 in Sitio Lingat, Barangay Litlit, Silang town.
Posadas said elements of the Silang Municipal Police Station, backed by elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Action Force (SAF), were responding to a shooting incident earlier that afternoon when they came under fire.
According to Posadas, a shooting incident first happened at said barangay before 4:30 pm, involving brothers Julian and Nick Lauriles as suspects.
The brothers allegedly shot dead a certain Avelino Ruiz, who is a caretaker of a land that is being claimed by the Lauriles family.
Posadas said Julian is a former police officer, with a rank of PO3, who was dismissed from the service due to a grave offense.
When police received a report about the killing of Ruiz, personnel from Silang PNP and the SAF rushed to the scene to respond.
“But the troops were ambushed by the Lauriles brothers as they were approaching their houses. So our troops fired back,” Posadas said.
He said the Lauriles brothers were armed with long firearms like M16 and carbines.
The firefight left Julian and PO2 Jimmy Tobias of the SAF killed, and PO1 Abelardo Maala of the Silang PNP wounded.
Nick, unfortunately, managed to escape, said Posadas. But manhunt operation against him is ongoing./DMS
March 27, 2008
An active and a former cop were killed while another one was hurt in a shootout incident Wednesday afternoon in Cavite province, an official said Thursday.
Sr. Supt. Fidel Posadas, provincial police chief, said the incident happened starting 4:30 pm of March 26 in Sitio Lingat, Barangay Litlit, Silang town.
Posadas said elements of the Silang Municipal Police Station, backed by elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Action Force (SAF), were responding to a shooting incident earlier that afternoon when they came under fire.
According to Posadas, a shooting incident first happened at said barangay before 4:30 pm, involving brothers Julian and Nick Lauriles as suspects.
The brothers allegedly shot dead a certain Avelino Ruiz, who is a caretaker of a land that is being claimed by the Lauriles family.
Posadas said Julian is a former police officer, with a rank of PO3, who was dismissed from the service due to a grave offense.
When police received a report about the killing of Ruiz, personnel from Silang PNP and the SAF rushed to the scene to respond.
“But the troops were ambushed by the Lauriles brothers as they were approaching their houses. So our troops fired back,” Posadas said.
He said the Lauriles brothers were armed with long firearms like M16 and carbines.
The firefight left Julian and PO2 Jimmy Tobias of the SAF killed, and PO1 Abelardo Maala of the Silang PNP wounded.
Nick, unfortunately, managed to escape, said Posadas. But manhunt operation against him is ongoing./DMS
Arroyo assured of non-revival of “Hello Garcia” scandal by incoming AFP chief
By Ronron
March 27, 2008
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo can continue sleeping soundly even after her perceived most loyal officer, Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. finally bows down from the service on May 9.
This as Esperon’s successor as Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, vowed not to release to the public the controversial Mayuga Report on the alleged involvement of some officers, including Esperon, in the alleged electoral fraud in 2004.
“If it’s not released now, then what’s the reason for me to do it,” Yano told Camp Aguinaldo reporters in a recent interview.
Only portions of the Mayuga Report were revealed in public, which mainly stated that there was lack in evidence to prove that any of the four senior military officers implicated in the alleged electoral fraud are liable.
The investigation was led by former AFP Inspector General Vice Admiral Mateo Mayuga, starting July 2005, on orders of then AFP chief of staff Gen. Efren Abu.
Those accused of taking part in the alleged electoral fraud to ensure the victory of Arroyo over her closest rival, the late Fernando Poe, Jr., are Esperon, retired Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko, retired Brig. Gen. Francisco Gudani, and retired Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon.
Their names cropped up after those were heard in the so-called “Hello Garci tapes,” which bore alleged wiretapped conversations of Arroyo and former Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.
The Mayuga Report was submitted to then Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz, Jr. Cruz has resigned from the Arroyo cabinet in November 2006.
Yano said the alleged illegitimacy of Arroyo as President due to the “Hello Garci” scandal is just a perception, and not a matter of fact.
“When you say legitimacy of the President, there are processes. She was declared (as President by Congress), so what other process do you think would strengthen or reinforce that legitimacy?” he said.
He said the matter of even releasing or not in public the Mayuga Report is “irrelevant” because “there are processes” to determine the legitimacy of the Arroyo leadership.
“That (releasing the Mayuga Report) is not part of the process,” said Yano.
Yano will have about 13 months to serve as AFP chief of staff, starting May 9 this year until he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 56 in June next year.
The alleged 2004 electoral fraud issue has been one of the many causes of attempted coups against the Arroyo government in the last few years./DMS
March 27, 2008
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo can continue sleeping soundly even after her perceived most loyal officer, Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. finally bows down from the service on May 9.
This as Esperon’s successor as Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, vowed not to release to the public the controversial Mayuga Report on the alleged involvement of some officers, including Esperon, in the alleged electoral fraud in 2004.
“If it’s not released now, then what’s the reason for me to do it,” Yano told Camp Aguinaldo reporters in a recent interview.
Only portions of the Mayuga Report were revealed in public, which mainly stated that there was lack in evidence to prove that any of the four senior military officers implicated in the alleged electoral fraud are liable.
The investigation was led by former AFP Inspector General Vice Admiral Mateo Mayuga, starting July 2005, on orders of then AFP chief of staff Gen. Efren Abu.
Those accused of taking part in the alleged electoral fraud to ensure the victory of Arroyo over her closest rival, the late Fernando Poe, Jr., are Esperon, retired Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko, retired Brig. Gen. Francisco Gudani, and retired Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon.
Their names cropped up after those were heard in the so-called “Hello Garci tapes,” which bore alleged wiretapped conversations of Arroyo and former Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.
The Mayuga Report was submitted to then Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz, Jr. Cruz has resigned from the Arroyo cabinet in November 2006.
Yano said the alleged illegitimacy of Arroyo as President due to the “Hello Garci” scandal is just a perception, and not a matter of fact.
“When you say legitimacy of the President, there are processes. She was declared (as President by Congress), so what other process do you think would strengthen or reinforce that legitimacy?” he said.
He said the matter of even releasing or not in public the Mayuga Report is “irrelevant” because “there are processes” to determine the legitimacy of the Arroyo leadership.
“That (releasing the Mayuga Report) is not part of the process,” said Yano.
Yano will have about 13 months to serve as AFP chief of staff, starting May 9 this year until he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 56 in June next year.
The alleged 2004 electoral fraud issue has been one of the many causes of attempted coups against the Arroyo government in the last few years./DMS
154 cadets graduate from PNPA
By Ronron
March 27, 2008
The Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) produced another batch of graduates on Thursday with 154 cadets expected to join the PNP, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was the guest of honor of the graduation rites held at the PNPA compound in Silang, Cavite. The event started 10am.
In her speech, Arroyo told the new junior officers of the PNP, BJMP and BFP to veer away from politics.
“There are certain civil rights that you have to give up and that is the right to speak politically. That is part of your discipline,” Arroyo told the graduates.
In response, class valedictorian Clent Ven Inciso said: “To my classmates, let us show them that we are worthy to be called public servants and defenders of democracy. The best way to edify our group is to live by example.”
Inciso, 21, of Southern Leyte province, is one of the 127 graduates who opted to join the PNP. The other 20 will join the BJMP and the remaining seven will be with the BFP.
As Valedictorian of the class, Inciso received the Presidential Kampilan Award from Arroyo.
In an interview on Wednesday at Camp Crame, Inciso had appealed to the public to support Arroyo until she finishes her term, instead of asking her to step down.
In attendance at the graduation rites are Vice President Noli de Castro, Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno, and Philippine Public Safety College President Margarita Cojuangco./DMS
March 27, 2008
The Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) produced another batch of graduates on Thursday with 154 cadets expected to join the PNP, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was the guest of honor of the graduation rites held at the PNPA compound in Silang, Cavite. The event started 10am.
In her speech, Arroyo told the new junior officers of the PNP, BJMP and BFP to veer away from politics.
“There are certain civil rights that you have to give up and that is the right to speak politically. That is part of your discipline,” Arroyo told the graduates.
In response, class valedictorian Clent Ven Inciso said: “To my classmates, let us show them that we are worthy to be called public servants and defenders of democracy. The best way to edify our group is to live by example.”
Inciso, 21, of Southern Leyte province, is one of the 127 graduates who opted to join the PNP. The other 20 will join the BJMP and the remaining seven will be with the BFP.
As Valedictorian of the class, Inciso received the Presidential Kampilan Award from Arroyo.
In an interview on Wednesday at Camp Crame, Inciso had appealed to the public to support Arroyo until she finishes her term, instead of asking her to step down.
In attendance at the graduation rites are Vice President Noli de Castro, Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno, and Philippine Public Safety College President Margarita Cojuangco./DMS
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
PNP takes in 127 new graduates of PNPA
By Ronron
March 26, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) welcomed on Wednesday the 127 out of the 154 graduates of the PNP Academy (PNPA) this year.
The 127, consisting of 27 females and 100 males, have decided to join the PNP organization while the rest are with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and the Bureau of Fire Protection.
PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. hosted yesterday the traditional service lunch at Camp Crame for the PNPA graduates who opted to enter the service, a day before their graduation at the PNPA compound in Silang, Cavite.
Razon said the new members of the PNP officers’ corps will be assigned to the Regional Mobile Groups (RMG) in the mountains so they can be oriented to the actual problem of insurgency and terrorism.
Razon said they can start to be deployed in early June after enjoying a 30-day break and 30-day training at the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame.
Upon graduation, Razon said the 127 members of the “Oman-Silang” Class of 2008 (New Breed of Warriors) will have the rank of Inspector. Each of them will also be entitled to the monthly salary of P21,876.38.
Razon urged the graduates to always remain professional by adhering to their Constitutional mandate.
“We expect them to be professional officers, respect the law, uphold the law, especially the Constitution,” he said.
“You may now consider yourselves the younger brothers and sisters of Mamang Pulis and Aleng Pulis who will help the PNP family bring back the old glory of the police force,” he added./DMS
March 26, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) welcomed on Wednesday the 127 out of the 154 graduates of the PNP Academy (PNPA) this year.
The 127, consisting of 27 females and 100 males, have decided to join the PNP organization while the rest are with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and the Bureau of Fire Protection.
PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. hosted yesterday the traditional service lunch at Camp Crame for the PNPA graduates who opted to enter the service, a day before their graduation at the PNPA compound in Silang, Cavite.
Razon said the new members of the PNP officers’ corps will be assigned to the Regional Mobile Groups (RMG) in the mountains so they can be oriented to the actual problem of insurgency and terrorism.
Razon said they can start to be deployed in early June after enjoying a 30-day break and 30-day training at the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame.
Upon graduation, Razon said the 127 members of the “Oman-Silang” Class of 2008 (New Breed of Warriors) will have the rank of Inspector. Each of them will also be entitled to the monthly salary of P21,876.38.
Razon urged the graduates to always remain professional by adhering to their Constitutional mandate.
“We expect them to be professional officers, respect the law, uphold the law, especially the Constitution,” he said.
“You may now consider yourselves the younger brothers and sisters of Mamang Pulis and Aleng Pulis who will help the PNP family bring back the old glory of the police force,” he added./DMS
RP to rely on US FBI test on alleged remains of Dulmatin
By Ronron
March 26, 2008
Philippine authorities are not yet losing hope that they could confirm the death of Indonesian bomber through the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) test conducted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on tissue samples from a cadaver recovered in Tawi-tawi last February.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. told reporters Wednesday that while the PNP Crime Laboratory failed to generate DNA profile from the same tissue samples due to their not-so-modern machine, the US has yet to release the result of the same analysis they made.
“That is just as far as the testing of the PNP Crime Laboratory. But let us bear in mind that the FBI has taken samples and brought them to their facilities for DNA testing,” Razon said.
Razon said the US FBI took tissue samples at the same time that the PNP Crime Laboratory did after the body was exhumed on February 18 in Barangay Balimbing, Panglima Sugala town.
The body was said to belong to a rebel who died in an encounter against Marine troopers last January 31 in the said town. The bandits were believed to be Abu Sayyaf elements who were responsible for the abduction attempt and murder of Fr. Rey Roda, head of the Notre Dame School in said province.
Razon said he is hopeful that there will be results from the US FBI because the latter uses mitochondrial machine.
He said there is no longer a similar test done at the Australian Federal Police as “due respect to the FBI study.”
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. said in a separate interview that he hopes to get a feedback on the study from United States Ambassador to Manila Kristie Kenney who is now in the United States and from officials of the US Pacific Command.
Esperon said that if the test turns negative, “I’m happy to say that it’s one terrorist less that we are hunting and fighting.”
“If it’s not Dulmatin, then we will go on looking for Dulmatin,” he said.
Dulmatin is wanted for his alleged involvement in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back, killing more than a hundred persons.
The US has offered a $10-million reward to those who could provide information that would lead to Dulmatin’s neutralization.
Dulmatin, along with fellow Indonesian bomber Umar Pater, reportedly entered the Philippines in 2003./DMS
March 26, 2008
Philippine authorities are not yet losing hope that they could confirm the death of Indonesian bomber through the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) test conducted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on tissue samples from a cadaver recovered in Tawi-tawi last February.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. told reporters Wednesday that while the PNP Crime Laboratory failed to generate DNA profile from the same tissue samples due to their not-so-modern machine, the US has yet to release the result of the same analysis they made.
“That is just as far as the testing of the PNP Crime Laboratory. But let us bear in mind that the FBI has taken samples and brought them to their facilities for DNA testing,” Razon said.
Razon said the US FBI took tissue samples at the same time that the PNP Crime Laboratory did after the body was exhumed on February 18 in Barangay Balimbing, Panglima Sugala town.
The body was said to belong to a rebel who died in an encounter against Marine troopers last January 31 in the said town. The bandits were believed to be Abu Sayyaf elements who were responsible for the abduction attempt and murder of Fr. Rey Roda, head of the Notre Dame School in said province.
Razon said he is hopeful that there will be results from the US FBI because the latter uses mitochondrial machine.
He said there is no longer a similar test done at the Australian Federal Police as “due respect to the FBI study.”
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. said in a separate interview that he hopes to get a feedback on the study from United States Ambassador to Manila Kristie Kenney who is now in the United States and from officials of the US Pacific Command.
Esperon said that if the test turns negative, “I’m happy to say that it’s one terrorist less that we are hunting and fighting.”
“If it’s not Dulmatin, then we will go on looking for Dulmatin,” he said.
Dulmatin is wanted for his alleged involvement in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back, killing more than a hundred persons.
The US has offered a $10-million reward to those who could provide information that would lead to Dulmatin’s neutralization.
Dulmatin, along with fellow Indonesian bomber Umar Pater, reportedly entered the Philippines in 2003./DMS
PNP plans to hire civilian personnel to replace police guards, technicians, mechanics and band players
By Ronron
March 26, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) intends to replace its personnel who are acting now as guards inside camps, technicians, mechanics and band players with civilian personnel.
PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said they discussed the plan in a meeting Wednesday morning among top-level officials of the organization so as to maximize the utilization of their personnel for their anti-criminality campaign.
“We will do this so we can download these personnel to the streets and the police stations and precincts,” Razon told reporters yesterday at Camp Crame.
“Hopefully, we could do this (before I retire in September) so we could push the human resources to the field,” he added.
Razon said they will implement said plan at Camp Crame, the PNP main headquarters, and in all regional offices in the country.
The PNP Directorate for Personnel and Records Management (DPRM) is still trying to find out how many police personnel are being used as guards, technicians, mechanics and band players as of now.
But in Camp Crame alone, it is estimated that 100 personnel are acting as guards and traffic guides, Razon said.
Asked if the new plan would have security implications to the camps, Razon said: “I don’t think there will be implications to the security in the camps.”
“We will make sure that we will get the agencies that are reputable,” he added.
Razon had vowed when he stepped in as PNP chief on October 1, 2007 to download 90 percent of the entire police force to the streets and stations to better address the criminality problem./DMS
March 26, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) intends to replace its personnel who are acting now as guards inside camps, technicians, mechanics and band players with civilian personnel.
PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said they discussed the plan in a meeting Wednesday morning among top-level officials of the organization so as to maximize the utilization of their personnel for their anti-criminality campaign.
“We will do this so we can download these personnel to the streets and the police stations and precincts,” Razon told reporters yesterday at Camp Crame.
“Hopefully, we could do this (before I retire in September) so we could push the human resources to the field,” he added.
Razon said they will implement said plan at Camp Crame, the PNP main headquarters, and in all regional offices in the country.
The PNP Directorate for Personnel and Records Management (DPRM) is still trying to find out how many police personnel are being used as guards, technicians, mechanics and band players as of now.
But in Camp Crame alone, it is estimated that 100 personnel are acting as guards and traffic guides, Razon said.
Asked if the new plan would have security implications to the camps, Razon said: “I don’t think there will be implications to the security in the camps.”
“We will make sure that we will get the agencies that are reputable,” he added.
Razon had vowed when he stepped in as PNP chief on October 1, 2007 to download 90 percent of the entire police force to the streets and stations to better address the criminality problem./DMS
Two soldiers, one rebel killed in clash in Abra
By Ronron
March 26, 2008
Two government soldiers and one suspected member of the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in an encounter last Monday in Abra province ahead of the 39th anniversary of the armed communist group on March 29, the police and military said Wednesday.
According to a police report at Camp Crame,, the incident happened at around 10:15 last March 24 in Sitio Pananuman, Barangay Tubtuba in the municipality of Tubo.
The report said the government troops belong to two platoons from the Charlie Company of the Philippine Army’s 50th Infantry Battalion, while the suspected insurgents number about five only.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) commander Lt. Gen. Rodrigo Maclang said the place is believed to be an encampment of the rebel group.
The police report said the firefight lasted for five minutes until some of the rebels escaped, leaving their camp to the control of the government forces.
Maclang said two soldiers and one rebel were killed, while six others soldiers were hurt after the exchange of gunfire.
One of the slain soldiers was identified in the police report as Private First Class Junior dela Cruz.
Maclang said the government troops also recovered two M16 rifles, two Garand rifles, two claymore mines, and 550 rounds of ammunition for Caliber 30 that were left behind by the rebels.
Meawhile, in Barangay Dibacung, Casiguran, Aurora, suspected NPA elements lobbed two grenades at 10pm of the same day inside the Bravo Company Command Post of the Philippine Army’s 69th Infantry Battalion, Maclang said.
He said the incident left two enlisted personnel injured. They were brought to the Casiguran District Hospital for treatment.
The 5,760-strong NPA has been waging guerilla warfare in the countryside for 39 years already on March 29.
The Arroyo government vows to crush the movement by 2010./DMS
March 26, 2008
Two government soldiers and one suspected member of the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in an encounter last Monday in Abra province ahead of the 39th anniversary of the armed communist group on March 29, the police and military said Wednesday.
According to a police report at Camp Crame,, the incident happened at around 10:15 last March 24 in Sitio Pananuman, Barangay Tubtuba in the municipality of Tubo.
The report said the government troops belong to two platoons from the Charlie Company of the Philippine Army’s 50th Infantry Battalion, while the suspected insurgents number about five only.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) commander Lt. Gen. Rodrigo Maclang said the place is believed to be an encampment of the rebel group.
The police report said the firefight lasted for five minutes until some of the rebels escaped, leaving their camp to the control of the government forces.
Maclang said two soldiers and one rebel were killed, while six others soldiers were hurt after the exchange of gunfire.
One of the slain soldiers was identified in the police report as Private First Class Junior dela Cruz.
Maclang said the government troops also recovered two M16 rifles, two Garand rifles, two claymore mines, and 550 rounds of ammunition for Caliber 30 that were left behind by the rebels.
Meawhile, in Barangay Dibacung, Casiguran, Aurora, suspected NPA elements lobbed two grenades at 10pm of the same day inside the Bravo Company Command Post of the Philippine Army’s 69th Infantry Battalion, Maclang said.
He said the incident left two enlisted personnel injured. They were brought to the Casiguran District Hospital for treatment.
The 5,760-strong NPA has been waging guerilla warfare in the countryside for 39 years already on March 29.
The Arroyo government vows to crush the movement by 2010./DMS
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Manila police precinct strafed
By Ronron
March 25, 2008
A police precinct in Manila City was strafed before dawn Tuesday by an unidentified gunman, damaging its glass door, an official said.
Manila Police District (MPD) Station 8 commander Supt. Jimmy Tiu said the Palanca Community Precinct of his unit came under fire at around 3:10 am yesterday while there were two policemen inside.
Tiu said the suspect used a suspected caliber 9mm pistol in the attack, hitting twice the glass door of the precinct.
Fortunately, none between PO2 Arthur Fortes and PO1 Ismael Nor who were both inside, were hurt, he said.
“Our assessment is that was more of a scare tactic by criminals in the Islamic Center who are being affected by our continuous campaign against criminality like illegal drugs and unlicensed firearms,” Tiu said.
“But this just challenges us more to do our job, instead of getting scared,” he added.
Tiu said Fortes and Nor fired their guns after the attack, but it was more of to drive off the suspect. “They fired their guns in the upward direction,” he said.
Tiu said that at that time, there were four policemen on duty. The two others, however, were on patrol when the incident happened.
He said some policemen from the station headquarters were immediately deployed to the precinct after the incident for reinforcement purposes./DMS
March 25, 2008
A police precinct in Manila City was strafed before dawn Tuesday by an unidentified gunman, damaging its glass door, an official said.
Manila Police District (MPD) Station 8 commander Supt. Jimmy Tiu said the Palanca Community Precinct of his unit came under fire at around 3:10 am yesterday while there were two policemen inside.
Tiu said the suspect used a suspected caliber 9mm pistol in the attack, hitting twice the glass door of the precinct.
Fortunately, none between PO2 Arthur Fortes and PO1 Ismael Nor who were both inside, were hurt, he said.
“Our assessment is that was more of a scare tactic by criminals in the Islamic Center who are being affected by our continuous campaign against criminality like illegal drugs and unlicensed firearms,” Tiu said.
“But this just challenges us more to do our job, instead of getting scared,” he added.
Tiu said Fortes and Nor fired their guns after the attack, but it was more of to drive off the suspect. “They fired their guns in the upward direction,” he said.
Tiu said that at that time, there were four policemen on duty. The two others, however, were on patrol when the incident happened.
He said some policemen from the station headquarters were immediately deployed to the precinct after the incident for reinforcement purposes./DMS
PNP never got DNA profile of cadaver suspected as Dulmatin’s
By Ronron
March 25, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) admitted Tuesday that it never got a DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) profile from the cadaver exhumed in Tawi-tawi last January 31, which was suspected to be that of Dulmatin’s.
Chief Supt. Arturo Cacdac, Director of the PNP Crime Laboratory, said this means they never got to proceed to confirm whether or not the body was really that of the Indonesian bomber who is an alleged member of the Jemaah Islamiyah.
“We failed to extract DNA profile from the tissue samples we took from the cadaver because it was already in an advanced state of decomposition,” Cacdac told Manila Shimbun in a phone interview yesterday.
He said his office in Camp Crame, Quezon City attempted to generate DNA profile of the cadaver using their nuclear machine, but to no avail.
“It could be that the quality of the samples are already very poor so the cells are already dead, or our machine could no longer really find any profile,” he explained in Filipino.
While Cacdac opted not to comment on whether or not tissue samples from the same cadaver were also sent to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for the same examination, he said it is possible the US may generate DNA profile because its FBI has the more modern mytocondrial machine.
He disclosed that the AFP is only using the same nuclear machine that the PNP Crime Laboratory has.
Because of the absence of the DNA profile of the cadaver, Cacdac said they were not able to make a comparison with the available DNA profile of Dulmatin’s children.
“We need to get a DNA profile from that cadaver for us to compare and determine if that is really the remains of Dulmatin. But since we did not generate anything, so we were not able to compare and do a testing,” he said.
Cacdac refused to comment when told that no less than PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. disclosed that tissue samples were already taken to the US FBI for DNA analysis purposes.
Razon and his counterpart with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr., had earlier expected that a result of the DNA test on the cadaver will be out in a month’s time as in the case of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani in late 2006 until early 2007.
Cacdac said he could not comment on whether or not tissue samples were taken to the US and Australia because it is beyond his level. “That’s up to the higher level to disclose that, or to the respective countries,” he said.
Asked about the same matter in a news conference yesterday morning at Camp Crame, Anti-Terrorism Council spokesman Ricardo Blancaflor just said that the DNA testing is still ongoing.
“We still don’t have the official report... I’m not sure if there is a delay because in the Janjalani case, it was almost 90 days,” said Blancaflor, who is also an Undersecretary of the Justice Department.
He recounted that even the DNA tests conducted on the victims of the Superferry bombing in 2004 lasted for two to three months to get results.
Unlike Cacdac, Blancaflor believes that DNA profiles can still be generated from very decomposed remains.
“This is a three-country joint operation… That’s (DNA testing) very exhaustive because we can’t afford to make a mistake… If it’s a month now, I don’t think it’s a delay because there are many agencies involved here,” said Blancaflor.
The US government has offered $10 million reward money for the neutralization of Dulmatin.
Dulmatin is believed to be a key suspect in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back that claimed the lives of over a hundred people, mostly tourists.
Philippine authorities say he arrived in the country in 2003, together with fellow bomber and Jemaah Islamiyah member, Umar Patek./DMS
March 25, 2008
The Philippine National Police (PNP) admitted Tuesday that it never got a DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) profile from the cadaver exhumed in Tawi-tawi last January 31, which was suspected to be that of Dulmatin’s.
Chief Supt. Arturo Cacdac, Director of the PNP Crime Laboratory, said this means they never got to proceed to confirm whether or not the body was really that of the Indonesian bomber who is an alleged member of the Jemaah Islamiyah.
“We failed to extract DNA profile from the tissue samples we took from the cadaver because it was already in an advanced state of decomposition,” Cacdac told Manila Shimbun in a phone interview yesterday.
He said his office in Camp Crame, Quezon City attempted to generate DNA profile of the cadaver using their nuclear machine, but to no avail.
“It could be that the quality of the samples are already very poor so the cells are already dead, or our machine could no longer really find any profile,” he explained in Filipino.
While Cacdac opted not to comment on whether or not tissue samples from the same cadaver were also sent to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for the same examination, he said it is possible the US may generate DNA profile because its FBI has the more modern mytocondrial machine.
He disclosed that the AFP is only using the same nuclear machine that the PNP Crime Laboratory has.
Because of the absence of the DNA profile of the cadaver, Cacdac said they were not able to make a comparison with the available DNA profile of Dulmatin’s children.
“We need to get a DNA profile from that cadaver for us to compare and determine if that is really the remains of Dulmatin. But since we did not generate anything, so we were not able to compare and do a testing,” he said.
Cacdac refused to comment when told that no less than PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. disclosed that tissue samples were already taken to the US FBI for DNA analysis purposes.
Razon and his counterpart with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr., had earlier expected that a result of the DNA test on the cadaver will be out in a month’s time as in the case of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani in late 2006 until early 2007.
Cacdac said he could not comment on whether or not tissue samples were taken to the US and Australia because it is beyond his level. “That’s up to the higher level to disclose that, or to the respective countries,” he said.
Asked about the same matter in a news conference yesterday morning at Camp Crame, Anti-Terrorism Council spokesman Ricardo Blancaflor just said that the DNA testing is still ongoing.
“We still don’t have the official report... I’m not sure if there is a delay because in the Janjalani case, it was almost 90 days,” said Blancaflor, who is also an Undersecretary of the Justice Department.
He recounted that even the DNA tests conducted on the victims of the Superferry bombing in 2004 lasted for two to three months to get results.
Unlike Cacdac, Blancaflor believes that DNA profiles can still be generated from very decomposed remains.
“This is a three-country joint operation… That’s (DNA testing) very exhaustive because we can’t afford to make a mistake… If it’s a month now, I don’t think it’s a delay because there are many agencies involved here,” said Blancaflor.
The US government has offered $10 million reward money for the neutralization of Dulmatin.
Dulmatin is believed to be a key suspect in the bombings in Bali, Indonesia a few years back that claimed the lives of over a hundred people, mostly tourists.
Philippine authorities say he arrived in the country in 2003, together with fellow bomber and Jemaah Islamiyah member, Umar Patek./DMS
Japanese spends two night in jail in Cebu for acting “wild,” says police
By Ronron
March 25, 2008
A Japanese national spent two nights in jail at a Cebu police station over the weekend after acting “wild” at the pension house where he was temporarily billeted and while on board a taxi, police said Tuesday.
The 42-year-old Japanese was first apprehended by police on Saturday afternoon hours after his arrival from Japan upon the complaint of a 24-year-old waitress at the restaurant of Mactan Pension House in Lapu-lapu City.
The Japanese reportedly threw at Viernes’ face some money bills that he tore apart after finding out that the bill for his lunch meal was too high.
Police said the Japanese thought his food was only worth 400 pesos. But he was surprised to learn that he was being charged with more or less 600 pesos.
The Japanese’ outrage reportedly bothered other guests at the restaurant, prompting the staff to seek police assistance.
The Japanese, who was described to be behaving abnormally and apparently not in his normal state of mind, was taken to the police station at around 2:50 pm.
He was supposed to be charged with slander by deed, and alarm and scandal, but Viernes opted not to pursue a legal action, the police said.
Thus, at 6:42 am of the following day, he was released from the detention cell of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office.
However, he returned there at around 11 am after the driver of the cab he was riding complained of his “abnormal and wild behavior.”
Ronie Cabilao, driver of CITRASCO taxi, told police that the Japanese hired him at around 8am at Pier 6 in Cebu City for a trip to Barangay Banilad. But when they arrived there, the Japanese wanted to be brought to the airport.
The Japanese reportedly turned wild again after learning that Cabilao cannot take him to the “Manila airport.” He reportedly grabbed the shirt of Cabilao and kept on pulling the hand brake.
At one point also, while still on the taxi, the Japanese took off all his clothes and just covered his face with newspaper.
Because of his behavior, the Japanese was brought back to the Lapu-lapu City Police Office by Cabilao.
The situation got worse there when the Japanese kicked the bumper of the taxi after alighting, causing it to deform. Cabilao told police that the Japanese got mad all the more apparently because he charged the Japanese more than the 1,000-pesos that he handed as payment for the trip.
The Japanese insisted he gave the driver 5,000-pesos, which the latter denied, the police said.
And with the damage to the taxi, Cabilao demanded an additional 10,000-pesos from the Japanese, which the latter refused to give. At this time, Cabilao decided to charge him for coercion and malicious mischief.
Thus, the Japanese was detained again until Monday morning when he agreed to pay 10,000 pesos to the driver as settlement with the help of a Japanese interpreter hired by city police chief Supt. Louie Oppus.
At 10 am of March 24, the Japanese was released from detention and was escorted by elements of the city police to the Consular Office of Japan in Cebu City.
However, the Consular Office refused to accept the Japanese as they reportedly feared he would behave wildly, the police said.
They brought him to the Immigration Office in Mandaue City, but was rejected also for the reason that he has not violated any Immigration laws.
So, the Japanese was brought back to the Lapu-lapu City Police Office where Oppus decided that he be flown back to Japan for his own safety, considering that he reportedly has some 500,000-pesos cash in various currencies (dollar, won, yen, and euro).
The police then escorted the Japanese to the Waterfront Hotel across the Mactan-Cebu International Airport in the same city so he can take the flight back to Japan the following day.
“We were instructed by our chief of police, Col. Oppus, to make sure that he is well-guarded because people might take advantage of him, especially because he was bringing huge amount of money,” said PO3 Christian Torres of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office Investigation Branch.
At around 6am yesterday (Tuesday), Torres and other elements of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office returned to the Waterfront Hotel to make sure that the Japanese is able to ride the Philippine Airlines flight to Narita, which he actually did at 8am.
Torres said the Japanese has no family in Japan, and only lives with his mother who owns apartments./DMS
March 25, 2008
A Japanese national spent two nights in jail at a Cebu police station over the weekend after acting “wild” at the pension house where he was temporarily billeted and while on board a taxi, police said Tuesday.
The 42-year-old Japanese was first apprehended by police on Saturday afternoon hours after his arrival from Japan upon the complaint of a 24-year-old waitress at the restaurant of Mactan Pension House in Lapu-lapu City.
The Japanese reportedly threw at Viernes’ face some money bills that he tore apart after finding out that the bill for his lunch meal was too high.
Police said the Japanese thought his food was only worth 400 pesos. But he was surprised to learn that he was being charged with more or less 600 pesos.
The Japanese’ outrage reportedly bothered other guests at the restaurant, prompting the staff to seek police assistance.
The Japanese, who was described to be behaving abnormally and apparently not in his normal state of mind, was taken to the police station at around 2:50 pm.
He was supposed to be charged with slander by deed, and alarm and scandal, but Viernes opted not to pursue a legal action, the police said.
Thus, at 6:42 am of the following day, he was released from the detention cell of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office.
However, he returned there at around 11 am after the driver of the cab he was riding complained of his “abnormal and wild behavior.”
Ronie Cabilao, driver of CITRASCO taxi, told police that the Japanese hired him at around 8am at Pier 6 in Cebu City for a trip to Barangay Banilad. But when they arrived there, the Japanese wanted to be brought to the airport.
The Japanese reportedly turned wild again after learning that Cabilao cannot take him to the “Manila airport.” He reportedly grabbed the shirt of Cabilao and kept on pulling the hand brake.
At one point also, while still on the taxi, the Japanese took off all his clothes and just covered his face with newspaper.
Because of his behavior, the Japanese was brought back to the Lapu-lapu City Police Office by Cabilao.
The situation got worse there when the Japanese kicked the bumper of the taxi after alighting, causing it to deform. Cabilao told police that the Japanese got mad all the more apparently because he charged the Japanese more than the 1,000-pesos that he handed as payment for the trip.
The Japanese insisted he gave the driver 5,000-pesos, which the latter denied, the police said.
And with the damage to the taxi, Cabilao demanded an additional 10,000-pesos from the Japanese, which the latter refused to give. At this time, Cabilao decided to charge him for coercion and malicious mischief.
Thus, the Japanese was detained again until Monday morning when he agreed to pay 10,000 pesos to the driver as settlement with the help of a Japanese interpreter hired by city police chief Supt. Louie Oppus.
At 10 am of March 24, the Japanese was released from detention and was escorted by elements of the city police to the Consular Office of Japan in Cebu City.
However, the Consular Office refused to accept the Japanese as they reportedly feared he would behave wildly, the police said.
They brought him to the Immigration Office in Mandaue City, but was rejected also for the reason that he has not violated any Immigration laws.
So, the Japanese was brought back to the Lapu-lapu City Police Office where Oppus decided that he be flown back to Japan for his own safety, considering that he reportedly has some 500,000-pesos cash in various currencies (dollar, won, yen, and euro).
The police then escorted the Japanese to the Waterfront Hotel across the Mactan-Cebu International Airport in the same city so he can take the flight back to Japan the following day.
“We were instructed by our chief of police, Col. Oppus, to make sure that he is well-guarded because people might take advantage of him, especially because he was bringing huge amount of money,” said PO3 Christian Torres of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office Investigation Branch.
At around 6am yesterday (Tuesday), Torres and other elements of the Lapu-lapu City Police Office returned to the Waterfront Hotel to make sure that the Japanese is able to ride the Philippine Airlines flight to Narita, which he actually did at 8am.
Torres said the Japanese has no family in Japan, and only lives with his mother who owns apartments./DMS
Querubin rushed to military hospital due to breathing problem
By Ronron
March 19, 2008
Marine Col. Ariel Querubin, one of the accused mutineers in February 2006, was brought to the hospital last Tuesday due to breathing problem, his wife told reporters Wednesday.
Maria Flor Querubin said her 51-year-old husband first complained of chest pains at around 3am Tuesday while inside his detention cell at the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) compound in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.
But he just endured the pain until 7am when he woke up and asked to be brought to the camp hospital.
“He had to walk out of the detention compound because no vehicle can go in the detention area,” Mrs. Querubin said.
However, the awarded officer failed to get the kind of medical attention he needed because the X-ray machine at said hospital was not working, and it also had no available muscle relaxant medicines, said Mrs. Querubin.
She complained that it took two hours before her husband was transferred to the AFP Medical Center along V. Luna Street in Quezon City, where he was promptly attended to by specialists.
Mrs. Querubin blamed the delay in the transfer of her husband to the AFP Medical Center to Col. Arnulfo Marcos, the military custodian, who told the camp hospital doctors that a clearance is needed from higher authorities.
Mrs. Querubin said that upon arrival at the AFP Medical Center, her husband was immediately brought to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and breathes with an oxygen supply until yesterday.
“They are monitoring if there is damage to his heart,” she said, adding that her husband is already in stable condition.
“According to the cardiologist this morning, he will recommend for coronary angiography to be done at the Philippine Heart Center to rule on any pathology of the heart,” she added.
But she said that this can only be done if AFP chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. approves it.
Mrs. Querubin recalled that when her husband was still detained at Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal, the camp doctor diagnosed him to have asthma bronchitis.
Querubin is facing Articles of War violation charges before a military court due to his alleged participation in the attempted power grab plot in February 2006.
He is a recipient of the highest military award, the Medal of Valor./DMS
March 19, 2008
Marine Col. Ariel Querubin, one of the accused mutineers in February 2006, was brought to the hospital last Tuesday due to breathing problem, his wife told reporters Wednesday.
Maria Flor Querubin said her 51-year-old husband first complained of chest pains at around 3am Tuesday while inside his detention cell at the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) compound in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.
But he just endured the pain until 7am when he woke up and asked to be brought to the camp hospital.
“He had to walk out of the detention compound because no vehicle can go in the detention area,” Mrs. Querubin said.
However, the awarded officer failed to get the kind of medical attention he needed because the X-ray machine at said hospital was not working, and it also had no available muscle relaxant medicines, said Mrs. Querubin.
She complained that it took two hours before her husband was transferred to the AFP Medical Center along V. Luna Street in Quezon City, where he was promptly attended to by specialists.
Mrs. Querubin blamed the delay in the transfer of her husband to the AFP Medical Center to Col. Arnulfo Marcos, the military custodian, who told the camp hospital doctors that a clearance is needed from higher authorities.
Mrs. Querubin said that upon arrival at the AFP Medical Center, her husband was immediately brought to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and breathes with an oxygen supply until yesterday.
“They are monitoring if there is damage to his heart,” she said, adding that her husband is already in stable condition.
“According to the cardiologist this morning, he will recommend for coronary angiography to be done at the Philippine Heart Center to rule on any pathology of the heart,” she added.
But she said that this can only be done if AFP chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. approves it.
Mrs. Querubin recalled that when her husband was still detained at Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal, the camp doctor diagnosed him to have asthma bronchitis.
Querubin is facing Articles of War violation charges before a military court due to his alleged participation in the attempted power grab plot in February 2006.
He is a recipient of the highest military award, the Medal of Valor./DMS
Monday, March 24, 2008
Comelec officer killed after shot in Intramuros
By Ronron
March 24, 2008
An official of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) was killed in a shooting incident Monday noon in Intramuros, Manila City perpetrated by two suspects, police said.
SPO2 Renato Garay of the Manila Police District (MPD) Station 5 said Director Wynne Asdala, 55, acting chief of the Comelec Law Department, expired at the Manila Doctor’s Hospital while undergoing operation.
Asdala was shot at around 12:40 pm at the corner of A. Soriano Avenue and Cabildo Streets while walking towards the Palacio del Gobernador, which houses the Comelec office.
Garay said Asdala had just taken his lunch then when two male persons aboard a red motorcycle approached him and fired once at close range, hitting him on his upper left chest, near his shoulder.
“I think it was close to his heart,” Garay, speaking in Filipino, described Asdala’s lone gunshot wound.
Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said Asdala expired sometime between 2:30 and 3pm.
Sarmiento and Garay said they are not yet still sure of the motive of the attack, although they are not discounting the possibility of it being work-related.
Sarmiento said they cannot hide the fact that the murder of Asdala causes alarm among Comelec officials and employees since it happened just a few months after former Law Department head Director Alioden Dalaig suffered the same fate.
“It is, so we are telling our people to take precautionary measures,” Sarmiento said when asked if the latest incident is already alarming them./DMS
March 24, 2008
An official of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) was killed in a shooting incident Monday noon in Intramuros, Manila City perpetrated by two suspects, police said.
SPO2 Renato Garay of the Manila Police District (MPD) Station 5 said Director Wynne Asdala, 55, acting chief of the Comelec Law Department, expired at the Manila Doctor’s Hospital while undergoing operation.
Asdala was shot at around 12:40 pm at the corner of A. Soriano Avenue and Cabildo Streets while walking towards the Palacio del Gobernador, which houses the Comelec office.
Garay said Asdala had just taken his lunch then when two male persons aboard a red motorcycle approached him and fired once at close range, hitting him on his upper left chest, near his shoulder.
“I think it was close to his heart,” Garay, speaking in Filipino, described Asdala’s lone gunshot wound.
Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said Asdala expired sometime between 2:30 and 3pm.
Sarmiento and Garay said they are not yet still sure of the motive of the attack, although they are not discounting the possibility of it being work-related.
Sarmiento said they cannot hide the fact that the murder of Asdala causes alarm among Comelec officials and employees since it happened just a few months after former Law Department head Director Alioden Dalaig suffered the same fate.
“It is, so we are telling our people to take precautionary measures,” Sarmiento said when asked if the latest incident is already alarming them./DMS
Army on alert for NPA anniversary on March 29
By Ronron
March 24, 2008
The Philippine Army is “on alert for possible attacks” by the New People’s Army (NPA) marking their 39th founding anniversary on March 29, its spokesman said Monday.
Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres, Jr. said the communists have already started to manifest their atrocities the last few days, such as the “murder of a barangay captain in Davao, and a barangay captain and his daughter in Camarines Sur;” and, the attacks on a Goldmine in Compostela Valley, sugar mills in Negros Occidental, and Globe facilities.”
“The military is always committed to prevent such incidents from happening. Troops assigned to field units are advised to be more vigilant as the NPA celebrates its anniversary,” Torres said.
“It can be noted that the rebel group usually celebrates their anniversary by staging terror attacks,” he said, “disrupting communities, and creating violence and terror.”
Acknowledging this, Metro Manila police chief Director Geary Barias said they could not discount also the possibility that communist rebels may extend their activities in the capital.
“But we are prepared for that. So there should be no cause for alarm,” he assured.
Torres appealed to the public to support the military’s efforts to end insurgency, noting the NPA’s efforts to “manipulate the people and blind them with the truth.”
“With the support of the peace-loving Filipino citizens, we shall not allow this rebel group to continue with their inhumane and atrocious activities. We are focused on our mission and that is to defeat communist insurgency,” he said.
The government aims to neutralize the 5,760-strong NPA by 2010 when President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ends her term./DMS
March 24, 2008
The Philippine Army is “on alert for possible attacks” by the New People’s Army (NPA) marking their 39th founding anniversary on March 29, its spokesman said Monday.
Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres, Jr. said the communists have already started to manifest their atrocities the last few days, such as the “murder of a barangay captain in Davao, and a barangay captain and his daughter in Camarines Sur;” and, the attacks on a Goldmine in Compostela Valley, sugar mills in Negros Occidental, and Globe facilities.”
“The military is always committed to prevent such incidents from happening. Troops assigned to field units are advised to be more vigilant as the NPA celebrates its anniversary,” Torres said.
“It can be noted that the rebel group usually celebrates their anniversary by staging terror attacks,” he said, “disrupting communities, and creating violence and terror.”
Acknowledging this, Metro Manila police chief Director Geary Barias said they could not discount also the possibility that communist rebels may extend their activities in the capital.
“But we are prepared for that. So there should be no cause for alarm,” he assured.
Torres appealed to the public to support the military’s efforts to end insurgency, noting the NPA’s efforts to “manipulate the people and blind them with the truth.”
“With the support of the peace-loving Filipino citizens, we shall not allow this rebel group to continue with their inhumane and atrocious activities. We are focused on our mission and that is to defeat communist insurgency,” he said.
The government aims to neutralize the 5,760-strong NPA by 2010 when President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ends her term./DMS
Crime rate in Metro Manila lower on Holy Week than in previous weeks
By Ronron
March 24, 2008
The crime rate in the Metro Manila during the Holy Week, especially crimes against persons, was notably lower compared to the previous two weeks, the police chief in the capital said Monday.
“Last week, Holy Week, Metro Manila was relatively peaceful,” Director Geary Barias of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) declared in a news conference yesterday.
According to him, the number of crimes from March 15-21 was only 117, which is fewer than the 179 reported from March 1 to 7, and the 148 from March 8 to 14.
Specifically, while the crimes against properties were almost the same over the three-week period (89-90-89), crimes against persons posed a big reduction – 90 on the first week, 58 on the second week, and 28 last week.
Consistently, the most common crime against persons is physical injury, followed by murder.
Barias said that most of the crime incidents last week happened in the areas of the Southern and Northern Police Districts, although in the previous two weeks, the Quezon City Police District topped this category.
Asked where will police attribute the “relatively peaceful situation” last week, Barias said: “It’s more of the blessedness of the Lenten season, aside from our deployment of policemen in bus stations, churches and other crowded places.”
As of 4pm Sunday, the entire Philippine National Police (PNP) has already gone down to the normal alert status from heightened level, noting “the successful public safety and security operations during the traditional Holy Week retreat holiday.”
But it will maintain its Operation Plan Bantay Lakbay until May for the fiesta celebrations in different parts of the country, and on the first week of June when classes resume./DMS
March 24, 2008
The crime rate in the Metro Manila during the Holy Week, especially crimes against persons, was notably lower compared to the previous two weeks, the police chief in the capital said Monday.
“Last week, Holy Week, Metro Manila was relatively peaceful,” Director Geary Barias of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) declared in a news conference yesterday.
According to him, the number of crimes from March 15-21 was only 117, which is fewer than the 179 reported from March 1 to 7, and the 148 from March 8 to 14.
Specifically, while the crimes against properties were almost the same over the three-week period (89-90-89), crimes against persons posed a big reduction – 90 on the first week, 58 on the second week, and 28 last week.
Consistently, the most common crime against persons is physical injury, followed by murder.
Barias said that most of the crime incidents last week happened in the areas of the Southern and Northern Police Districts, although in the previous two weeks, the Quezon City Police District topped this category.
Asked where will police attribute the “relatively peaceful situation” last week, Barias said: “It’s more of the blessedness of the Lenten season, aside from our deployment of policemen in bus stations, churches and other crowded places.”
As of 4pm Sunday, the entire Philippine National Police (PNP) has already gone down to the normal alert status from heightened level, noting “the successful public safety and security operations during the traditional Holy Week retreat holiday.”
But it will maintain its Operation Plan Bantay Lakbay until May for the fiesta celebrations in different parts of the country, and on the first week of June when classes resume./DMS
MNLF renegades and ASG plan attacks to press Misuari’s release – police report
By Ronron
March 24, 2008
Renegade members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) elements are allegedly planning to attack government forces in Sulu province if MNLF chairman Nur Misuari will not be released from his being under house arrest.
According to a police report yesterday in Camp Crame, some 600 armed leaders and members of the MNLF and ASG met last March 18 starting 4pm until 4:45 am of the following day at Barangay Tiis in Talipao, Sulu to discuss the “refusal of the government to release MNLF Chairman Nur Misuari” from his “house arrest at New Manila, Quezon City.”
Misuari is in detention due to his rebellion case that stemmed from a raid in Jolo, Sulu in 2001.
The report bared that the meeting was presided by MNLF commander Khaid Ajibon as they observed the Bangsamoro Day. During the meeting, the rebel groups were reportedly armed with 12 units of 60 MM and 81 MM mortars, two 90 RR, and two 57 anti-tank/personnel recoilless weapons.
It said that the following MNLF leaders attended the meeting: Ustadz Khabir Malik, Tahil Sali, Ustadz Mahmor Gardan, Nidzmi Jabbar, and Hadji Idjan Adam.
While on the ASG side, the personalities in attendance were Commanders Raddulan Sahiron, Albader Parad, AngahAdja, Sihata Latip, and Sahid Susukan.
According to the report, the groups agreed that “once the government will not free the MNLF chairman, an armed offensive will be launched simultaneously by the MNLF and ASG forces against the government troops in the hinterlands of Panamao, Maimbung and Talipao areas to gain media mileage and foreign nations’ attention.”
The planned attack will reportedly be divided into two categories: the MNLF will stage harassments and assault towards government troop detachments, while the ASG will launch ambuscade at any government troop vehicles.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Western Mindanao commander Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga said “this could be a raw information picked up by our police counterparts.”
“But regardless if that is true or not, our troops there in Sulu and elsewhere are always prepared for possible attacks,” Allaga said in Filipino in a phone interview yesterday afternoon.
He said this report is not cause for alarm because they always receive this on a daily basis.
“That’s just normal to us,” said Allaga./DMS
March 24, 2008
Renegade members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) elements are allegedly planning to attack government forces in Sulu province if MNLF chairman Nur Misuari will not be released from his being under house arrest.
According to a police report yesterday in Camp Crame, some 600 armed leaders and members of the MNLF and ASG met last March 18 starting 4pm until 4:45 am of the following day at Barangay Tiis in Talipao, Sulu to discuss the “refusal of the government to release MNLF Chairman Nur Misuari” from his “house arrest at New Manila, Quezon City.”
Misuari is in detention due to his rebellion case that stemmed from a raid in Jolo, Sulu in 2001.
The report bared that the meeting was presided by MNLF commander Khaid Ajibon as they observed the Bangsamoro Day. During the meeting, the rebel groups were reportedly armed with 12 units of 60 MM and 81 MM mortars, two 90 RR, and two 57 anti-tank/personnel recoilless weapons.
It said that the following MNLF leaders attended the meeting: Ustadz Khabir Malik, Tahil Sali, Ustadz Mahmor Gardan, Nidzmi Jabbar, and Hadji Idjan Adam.
While on the ASG side, the personalities in attendance were Commanders Raddulan Sahiron, Albader Parad, AngahAdja, Sihata Latip, and Sahid Susukan.
According to the report, the groups agreed that “once the government will not free the MNLF chairman, an armed offensive will be launched simultaneously by the MNLF and ASG forces against the government troops in the hinterlands of Panamao, Maimbung and Talipao areas to gain media mileage and foreign nations’ attention.”
The planned attack will reportedly be divided into two categories: the MNLF will stage harassments and assault towards government troop detachments, while the ASG will launch ambuscade at any government troop vehicles.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Western Mindanao commander Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga said “this could be a raw information picked up by our police counterparts.”
“But regardless if that is true or not, our troops there in Sulu and elsewhere are always prepared for possible attacks,” Allaga said in Filipino in a phone interview yesterday afternoon.
He said this report is not cause for alarm because they always receive this on a daily basis.
“That’s just normal to us,” said Allaga./DMS
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