CAVITE, Philippines – Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Manuel Roxas II refused to join the very public debate over the Senate’s reopening of its Mamasapano probe and pointed out repeatedly that it is not his job to comment on other people’s actions.
A year after bullets rained in parts of Mamasapano town in Maguindanao, the Senate is set to hold another hearing on a controversial police operation that claimed the lives of more than 60 people, including 44 policemen.
The probe will be headed by Senator Grace Poe, who is also seeking the presidency. It did not take long for politicians from different camps, including the LP, to call on Poe to inhibit from the probe to supposedly “de-politicize” it. Poe chairs the Senate’s public safety committee.
“It’s not for me to comment on somebody else’s conduct lalo na kung katunggali ko siya (especially because I’m running against her),” Roxas told reporters on Sunday, January 10, on the sidelines of a Pentecostal Missionary Church of Christ (PMCC) gathering in Imus, Cavite.
Earlier, “Daang Matuwid” coalition spokesman Akbayan Representative Ibarra Gutierrez called on Poe and other senators seeking higher posts in 2016 to keep their distance from the probe and let non-reelectionists to take over.
At least 7 senators are seeking higher posts in 2016: Poe and Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago are running for president while senators Francis Escudero, Alan Peter Cayetano, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Antonio Trillanes IV, and Gregorio Honasan are all running for vice president.
Roxas was interior chief when the bloody clash happened, but was kept out of the loop supposedly on the orders of former police chief Alan Purisima. Another key personality in the operation, former Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Action Force (SAF) chief Getulio Napeñas, is a senatorial candidate of opposition standard-bearer Vice President Jejomar Binay’s party.
Asked if he would encourage the LP’s Senate bets who are incumbent senators to inhibit, Roxas had this to say.
“Why should they inhibit? Kung meron silang gustong alamin ay bilang senador, ay andiyan pa naman po sila (If they want to know something, as senators they’re still there). It’s not for me to tell the senators how to conduct themselves,” he said.
Senate President Franklin Drilon, Senator Teofisto Guingona III, and Senator Ralph Recto are all seeking fresh terms in 2016 under the LP-led coalition.
{source}<blockquote class="twitter-video" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Should LP senate bets inhibit from <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MamasapanoProbe?src=hash">#MamasapanoProbe</a>? <a href="https://twitter.com/MARoxas">@MARoxas</a> says: It's not for me to tell a senator how t... <a href="https://t.co/M2RLwM8WmU">https://t.co/M2RLwM8WmU</a></p>— Bea Cupin (@beacupin) <a href="https://twitter.com/beacupin/status/686118493989765121">January 10, 2016</a></blockquote><script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>{/source}
In the aftermath of the clash, the bloodiest one-day operation in PNP history, several groups conducted investigations. The PNP had its Board of Inquiry (BOI) probe, the Senate eventually came out with a draft committee report, the House of Representatives held hearings, and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) conducted an internal investigation, followed by the International Monitoring Team (IMT) observing the peace process in the area.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) eventually released the results of its own probe, which led to the filing of cases against some 90 members of the MILF, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, and private armed groups for the death of the 55th Special Action Battalion.
“Kung magpatawag sila, okay; kung ipatawag nila tayo, okay. Wala naman tayong tinatago. At kung matapos 'yung napakaraming mga hearing ay may gusto pa silang alamin, why not?” added Roxas.
(If they call for a hearing, okay. If they summon me, okay. I’m not hiding anything. And if after so many hearings, they still want to know more, why not?)
Roxas had earlier said he would attend the probe should he be summoned.
No less than President Benigno Aquino III, chairman of the ruling LP, has said that politics was among the many motivations in the reopening of the case one year later. It was Senator Juan Ponce Enrile’s request that prompted the Senate to give the go-signal for the resumption of hearings.
Enrile was detained at the PNP General Hospital for his supposed involvement in the pork barrel scam when the Senate first probed the police incident. Poe has cited Enrile’s “new evidence” and “personal information” as a reason for reopening the probe. While Enrile was detained, some of the survivors of the bloody clash were also admitted to the PNP General Hospital. – Rappler.com