* Senator who negotiated with Ducat appeals to Puno to reconsider ouster of Abarsoza, 2 other police officials
INTERIOR Secretary Ronaldo Puno on Friday deferred the administrative relief of Senior Superintendent Danilo Abarsoza as head of the Manila Police District (MPD) for bungling the handling of the Wednesday hostage crisis that placed in danger the lives of 26 pre-school children.
Puno decided not to pursue Abarsoza's relief upon the request of PNP Chief Oscar Calderon.
The interior chief however said the relief of MPD Station 5 commander Rogelio Rosales and police precinct commander Bernardo Cubacub, who were directly in charge of the hostage crisis, stays.
The interior chief said the deferment of Abarsoza's relief does not mean that the Manila district director is already off the hook as he is still under investigation by a PNP panel that is looking into how the police had handled the 10-hour hostage taking by Armando Ducat Jr. of the pre-school children entrusted under his care.
Puno told police officials to stop commenting about the case and leave it to the PNP investigative panel led by Deputy Director General Avelino Razon to assess the way that the hostage crisis was handled.
He also ordered the PNP to prosecute Ducat and his cohort Caesar Carbonell.
Puno said the investigative group would determine whether the police officers in charge of handling the hostage crisis had followed operational procedures governing hostage situations such as the formation of crisis management committee headed by the local chief executive in the area; the designation of only one ground commander and a set of negotiators; and asking permission from the ground commander or negotiating panel before talking to the hostage taker, among others.
Puno said the panel would focus on four concerns, namely, define for the public the rules governing hostage situations; identify what rules were violated; identify who violated such rules; and sanctions to be imposed on the PNP personnel who violated these rules.
Calderon, for his part, said asked Puno to defer Abarsoza's relief "because we really need a continuous administration of the Manila Police at this time".
"That position is very critical," added Calderon.
National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Reynaldo Varilla also defended Abarsoza, who he said exerted efforts to peacefully settle the 10-hour hostage crisis.
Varilla, who called the shots on the ground at the last hours of the hostage crisis, he would welcome it if the PNP leadership would also order an investigation against him, Abarsoza, Rosales and Cubacub.
At Malacañang, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said there is a need to review the PNP's policies and ground rules on hostage-taking as well as the fitness of police commanders.
However, Bunye said the Palace will let the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) handle the dishing out of disciplinary actions.
He also said the President ordered government agencies to give "high-level attention"to the needs of the children who were taken hostage.
Meanwhile, Senator Ramon "Bong" Revilla jr. appealed to Puno to reconsider the relief of Rosales and Cubacub.
Revilla clarified that the police did not allow him to enter the bus where Ducat held his wards hostage because Ducat "appeared very agitated" and yet the senator decided to go into the bus against the wishes of the police.
"I was there to help and only support the actions of the people in charge. It just so happened that the hostage taker trusted me and transacted through me. It should not be taken against the police if the hostage taker trusted only men, and I believe it was a blessing that he did. I believe that my presence there calmed him (Ducat)," Revilla said.
He defended the police officers by saying that they exerted efforts to assist and help resolve the crisis peacefully.
But Senator Pilar Juliana "Pia" Cayetano said Ducat and Carbonell should be made to face justice for risking the lives of the innocent children and teachers.
Cayetano said that there are other legitimate ways of fighting for any valid cause "but taking children hostage is not one of them." (VR/JMR/CPB with Press release/Sunnex)
