Monday, February 05, 2007
Guv tags Moro rebel group in jail attack
By Ben O. Tesiorna
NORTH Cotabato Governor Emmanuel Piñol tagged the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Friday's jailbreak at North Cotabato provincial jail in Kidapawan City.
Piñol said the way the raid was conducted and the weapons used were indicative that the operation was well planned and well funded. This led him to say that the MILF is involved in the jailbreak.
Piñol, in a press conference Saturday, said the weapons used, like the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), are also "signature weapons" of the MILF.
"The MILF should not wash their hands off this incident. This is very clear, who are they fooling? The raiders were last seen crossing Himay and went to Sitio Malikaya in Kabacan and then disappeared in Liguasan Marsh. Nobody could enter Liguasan Marsh without approval from the MILF," Piñol said.
Challenge
The governor challenged the MILF to prove its innocence by helping facilitate the surrender of the 49 escapees especially the three high-profile inmates accused of bombing Kidapawan in 2002.
"The MILF should prove their sincerity and arrest the prisoners and surrender them to the government. That's the only way the MILF can convince me that they have nothing to do with it," Piñol said.
He, however, said he does not expect the prisoners, especially the suspected bombers, to be arrested by the pursuing police and military personnel.
The governor offered P20,000 reward for each of the escapees' arrest.
Can't penetrate
Eastern Mindanao Command chief General Rodolfo Obaniana admitted that they could not easily penetrate the Liguasan Marsh since it is a declared MILF area.
He said they will be violating the ceasefire agreement if they do so.
Obaniana said though that Liguasan Marsh is not that impenetrable as others think provided that higher authorities give them the go signal.
Local group
Meanwhile, several local armed men were identified by the authorities to be involved in the early morning raid.
Piñol said aside from Bayan Daluyod, a former detainee of the provincial jail who helped gunmen enter the facility, two other suspects, both members of the Moro National Liberation Front, were identified.
Daluyod was incarcerated for robbery homicide charges.
Piñol said Daluyod, who was released from jail after settling the case with the complainants, was identified by his former jail mates as the one who guided the raiders during the jail attack.
The governor refused to divulge the identities of the two other suspects pending the filing of charges against them.
Piñol said most of the raiders, about 40 of the estimated 60 attackers, are locals. The rest, he said, are members of the MILF-Special Operations Group.
Apology
The governor earlier apologized to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the people of North Cotabato for the jailbreak.
Though fully accepting responsibility of the incident, Piñol, however, expressed his disappointment over the Supreme Court's inaction on their previous request for transfer of high-profile inmates.
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Manila. For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (February 5, 2007 issue)
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