Friday, February 13, 2015

QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS


THE Mamasapano massacre has opened a kind of Pandora’s box full of intriguing questions about the secret operation that resulted in the tragic death of 44 Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police in that town of Maguindanao province on the early morning of January 25. Answers to the questions remain unanswered to this day!

First of all, why did President Noynoy Aquino, who merely admitted during a speech on live television his “responsibility as commander-in-chief” for the tragic incident, point to SAP Chief Director Getulio Napenas as answerable for it? 

Wasn’t Aquino really the one who knew of the operation to capture Malaysian international terrorist Zulkiflic bin Hir alias “Marwan”, as early as November 2014? Wasn’t he the one who actually directed the operation from an intelligence facility of the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga? 

How come in Aquino’s TV address, there was no mention that he coordinated with the AFP Chief of Staff and only talked directly to the SAF chief, and “consulted” suspended PNP chief Alan Purisima? And also why PNP Officer-in-Charge Leonardo Espina was kept out of the loop? 

Who really planned, funded and monitored what was called “Operation Wolverine” to hunt down “Marwan”, and his local bomb-making partner Abdul Basit Usman? 

Was the “actionable intelligence” about those two, as Aquino claimed, really generated by the PNP Intelligence Group, or, was it provided by US Federal Bureau of Investigation agents to Philippine government authorities? 

Was it the US, which reportedly provided the incentive of $5-million reward for the capture of Marwan, who was in the area controlled by the MILF’s 105th Base Camp, actually calling the shots for the operation which had disastrous results for the PNP-SAF commandos? 

Was Aquino aware of the US involvement, such as the tactical training and funding of military equipment for the Mamasapano operation, which led to the killing of 44 SAF commandos?

If Aquino knew about the covert activities of the Americans, shouldn’t he be held accountable for the Mamasapano massacre of those elite police commandos? 

The truthful answers to all these questions and more can be ferreted out only through an independent and impartial investigating body, and establish full accountability for the Mamasapano tragedy and, hopefully, pave the way for justice for those fallen heroes and their grieving widows and families.

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“Why are we forging a peace pact with the MILF which has been coddling terrorists? (Obviously referring to Malaysian Zulkifli bin Abdul Hir alias “Marwan”, and his Filipino deputy Usman)?” 

This question was posed by Bernie Lopez of “Eastwind,” an independent media group based in Australia. “The immediate decision from the very start should have been the scuttling of the pact and abrogation of Bangsamoro Basic Law.” He cited the “insincerity of the MILF which leaves an indelible mark on the irrelevance of the peace talks.” 

“The peace talks are a never-ending PR circus,” Lopez noted. “All presidents have been conducting peace talks because it would be political suicide to have wars in their hands. Anything to delay, to momentarily stop these conflicts are good enough politically. So they appease rebels with all concessions, including the scandalous BBL provision that the proposed Bangsamoro government has a right to put up its own army and police. ...Peace talks which give arms are ridiculous!”

At last, the forging of the peace pact with the MILF and the passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law have been put on hold by investigating and fact-finding committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

***

Who’s the man getting the blame for the death of 44 police commandos in the hands of Muslim rebels, instead of President Aquino, the Commander-in-Chief of the AFP?

He is relieved Special Action Force (SAF) director Getulio Napenas. A 1982 graduate of the Philippine Military Academy, he took over the post of SAF commander on December 11, 2013. He was among the pioneering batch of officers of SAF, which was created on May 16, 1983. He also served as chief directional staff and deputy director of SAF before he was designated its director.

Many of the peers of Napenas say that he is “a man of principle, mission-oriented and a true leader. He does not want any fanfare.”

And that’s why Napenas can testify and tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth that the President “knew everything” about the operation! 

***

Quote of the Day: “A leader should never be ashamed to own he has been in the wrong, which is but saying, in other words, that he is wiser today than he was yesterday!” – Anon.

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