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Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Oro, Iligan next targets for terror
CAGAYAN de Oro is one of three areas targeted by the perpetrators of the Valentine's Day bombings.
This was the gist of intelligence reports gathered by the authorities and affirmed by Mayor Vicente Emano in a radio interview Tuesday.
Following reports about the explosions, combined elements of the city police, regional police, military and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) made a "show of force" by stationing their units at the City Kiosk in Divisoria late Tuesday evening.
However, city police chief Senior Superintendent Honorio Cervantes made assurances the deployment shouldn't be a cause for alarm among city residents.
"This deployment of units by the combined forces of the city police, PNP 10 and the Fourth Infantry Division (4th ID) is meant to prevent the incidence of bombings in the city," he told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro.
Already officials at public transportation sites such as the Integrated Bus Terminal (IBT) in Agora are now requiring passengers to sign the security logbook before boarding, especially those carrying weapons.
Emano warned that the threat posed by these elements won't go away anytime soon.
There are reports the Jemaayah Islamiyah (JI) is behind the explosions that rocked General Santos City, Davao City and Manila last Monday.
Active, passive
Local representatives of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) Tuesday denied they had anything to do with the explosions in TV interviews.
The mayor was present during the deployment and talked with top police and military officials about the bombings in the three areas.
Three simultaneous bombings were recorded in three cities last Monday that killed and injured innocent civilians.
The first bombing occurred in General Santos followed by explosions in Ecoland the terminal in Davao City and in Makati.
And in an interview over dxIF Bombo Radyo Emano said he believes that the three bombings had something to do with the on-going war in Sulu.
PNP 10 regional director Chief Superintendent Dante Tejada placed the region on full red alert status immediately after the explosions.
For his part Fourth Infantry Division Chief Major General Samuel Bagasin also believed that the bombings were connected to the trouble in Sulu. "We all take active and passive measures," he said.
Aside from Cagayan de Oro, other potential targets were Iligan City and the Cotabato provinces.
Presence
Emano then said he met with representatives from the Muslim and lumad communities and called on them anew to extend their assistance in monitoring any suspicious characters or activities within their areas.
The PNP 10 tightened security and placed checkpoints to monitor the personalities entering the region.
Tejada said they are considering the possibility that Cagayan de Oro is not only the potential target but all towns within Region 10.
But Tejada clarified that they have not so far monitored any terrorists' presence in the region.
The 4th ID also deployed K9 dogs and the personnel of the Explosive Ordnance Division (EOD) to provide immediate response to any untoward incidents.
Latest reports indicated that there are 20 injured victims and one fatality in Davao City, as the authorities are yet to determine the identities of the perpetrators.
Witness accounts said that an unidentified young male was sighted as responsible for placing the bomb at the gate of the Ecoland terminal.
In General Santos City, the bomb was set-off outside the Gaisano Mall.
As this developed, a man named Abu Solayman who introduced himself as spokesman of the Abu Sayyaf, admitted that the group is responsible for bombings.
Solayman said the explosions were intended as a Valentine's Day gift for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. (Stephen Capillas with a report from Sun.Star Superbalita)
(February 16, 2005 issue)
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