PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Monday instructed government troops to do a “massive” manhunt against the group responsible for the beheading of a school principal in Jolo, Sulu.

Gabriel Canizares, 36, who was kidnapped last October 19 by suspected Abu Sayyaf members, was confirmed dead as his severed head was recovered in a sack at a gas station in Jolo town early morning Monday.

"The Manny Pacquiao Blog". Click here for stories and updates on the Filipino boxing champ.

“The President has instructed the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the PNP (Philippine National Police) to form a task group to investigate on this matter and at the same time the President also instructed the AFP and the PNP to do a massive manhunt to the people responsible for this heinous crime,” said Press Undersecretary Anthony Golez in his weekly press briefing.

Golez said Arroyo, who has been concerned in the welfare of school teachers, sympathizes and deeply condoles with the family of Canizares.

“Our President gives importance to the valor of our school teachers and government employees who unfortunately became a victim of crime and died in Sulu,” he said.

The abductors of the Canizares were reportedly demanding a ransom of P2 million ($42,000) for his release. No ransom, meanwhile, was given.

Golez denied that the government had overlooked the abduction of Canizares, which led to his death.

“You know, it is hard to say that there is negligence because if you could see the job of our authorities, they are risking their lives to pursue these bandits,” he said.

He also dismissed that the government is prioritizing the recovery of ailing Irish priest Michael Sinnott who was seized a week before Canizares was snatched.

“In every abduction case, we created a task force to handle it. Perhaps we are just hearing reports about Fr. Sinnott most often and we don’t hear news about other Filipinos abducted but still the efforts being given to them were all equal,” he explained.

To be able to end insurgency, Golez believed that the help of the common people would be efficient. “It is important that the public and the authorities will be helping each other to capture these perpetrators.”

A great loss

The Department of Education (DepEd) condemns the beheading of Canizares, saying he is a great loss to the department’s effort to improve the delivery of basic education to the war-torn island.

“The entire DepEd family is shocked and grieves with the family of one of our best-performing principals, Mr. Gabriel Canizares. He is a key catalyst in our various teacher trainings with Synergia in Sulu and he is a great loss to our efforts to improve the quality of education of our children in the area,” Education Secretary Jesli Lapus said upon learning the incident.

“We condemn this heinous act against the people of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm). Violence creates more suffering and sabotaging education by harming teachers will have dire consequences and the attainment of peace and progress in the region,” he added.

Sulu education department supervisor Eufrenio Canaria said the beheading was a barbaric act that has no place in a civilized society. “We are angry, very angry and at the same time very sad for what had happened.”

Various teachers group in Metro Manila led by the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), the Teachers Dignity Coalition (TDC) and the 40,000-strong DepEd-National Employees Union (DepEd-NEU) also condemned the incident.

“It was shocking and very sad news… the death of Principal Canizares. We condole with his family as well as to the community he was serving. We condemn the killing of Canizares,” Professor Antonio Tinio, national chairperson of ACT, said.

Justice be served

At the same time, Tinio said the government should run after the kidnappers and ensure that justice will be served the Canizares family.

“That is the obligation of the government … go after the bandits and give justice to his death,” he added.

Benjo Basas, TDC president, echoed Tinio’s statement and said authorities must take decisive steps to end the kidnapping against teachers and school officials in the region.

“This is a devilish crime perpetrated against a helpless teacher. A heinous act condemnable in strongest possible terms,” Basas said.

He also said the military, police, local officials, and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm)-DepEd must explain what measures it takes to save the life of Canizares and why did they allow him to be beheaded.

DepEd-NEU president Domingo Alidon said teachers’ lives should be spared, adding that they are just doing their jobs to bring education to even the remotest corner of the country.

“Our organization condemns in the highest degree the barbarous act of the Abu Sayyaf. They should spare DepEd personnel from these kidnap-for-ransom activities,” Alidon said.

He also urged the National Government to end the criminal activities of the group.

“Instead of focusing on other things like raising funds for the 2010 election, they should focus on this. Kung ano ano pang mag ginagawa nila samantalang dito dapat naka-focus lahat ng resources natin dito. Let us give special attention to the plight of the teachers in Mindanao who are serving despite the meager salary,” he added.

“The President must do something to end these illegal activities. This is alarming because this isn’t the first incident that teachers in Mindanao are victimized,” he stressed.

The severed head of Canizares, 36, was discovered near a gas station in downtown Jolo, Sulu, around 5:30 a.m. Monday, according to Army spokesman Romeo Brawner Jr.

As of Monday morning, authorities have yet to recover his body.

A retaliation

Brawner said Canizares's beheading might be retaliation for the recent capture of a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) leader involved in the beheading of Marines in 2007.

"There has been a demand for ransom but there had been several threats on his life since he was kidnapped," Brawner added.

Authorities said the kidnappers demanded a P2 million ransom for his release. Negotiations brought it down to P500,000 but his family was only able to raise P150,000.

Around 12 heavily armed men abducted Canizares, a principal of the elementary school in Barangay Kanague, Patikul town, around 4:20 p.m. last October 19 at Kilometer 7 in Barangay Tanum.

The victim was on his way to Jolo on board a passenger jeep together with other teachers when he was forcibly taken by the bandits.

Last January and March, a total of six public elementary teachers were also kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in Zambonga though they were released after several months of negotiation between the kidnappers and the local authorities. (Jill Beltran/AH/Sunnex)