OVER a hundred people ordered arrested for rebellion and other crimes in connection with the martial law proclamation in Mindanao remain at large, two months before the proclamation expires in December, a military official said on Friday.
Major General Restituto Padilla Jr., Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson, said that only over a hundred of 310 individuals included in arrest orders, with regard to Marawi crisis, were apprehended.
He said the military remained vigilant as those ordered arrested might go into hiding in Manila, Visayas, or Mindanao.
"We continue to be alert because out of the names indicated in the arrest order, which is almost about 300, if I'm not mistaken, there were only about a hundred, most likely more than a hundred who were arrested. So a big part of that list remains at large. So remember, they still remain at large so they still pose a threat," Padilla said.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, acting as martial law administrator, signed Arrest Order 1 and 2, containing the names of 310 alleged members and sympathizers of terror groups in Mindanao.
Arrest Order 1 calls for the arrest of 125 individuals while Arrest Order 2 lists 185 names, including names of several alleged Maute clan members who instigated the battle in Marawi City on May 23.
The armed struggle in Marawi has ended nearly five months since Maute terror group wreaked havoc on May 23 in the southern city that devastated the homes of hundreds of thousands of residents there.
The government currently proceeds to rehabilitation efforts to bring back normalcy in Marawi, especially as foreign donations and pledges continue to pour in.
Office of Civil Defense's Deputy Administrator for administration Kristoffer James Purisima said Canada, China, Germany, Korea, India, Thailand, Association of Southeast Asian Nations' Coordinating Centre for Human Rights Assistance on Disaster Management, and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) donated funds for Marawi's recovery.
Purisima added that the government received additional pledges from USAID, Asian Development Bank, European Union (EU), World Bank, United Nations Development Programme, Australia, and Japan.
He said foreign pledges would still be subject to thorough evaluation, especially after Duterte earlier announced that the Philippines would no longer accept future grants from EU.
Malacañang, however, earlier clarified that the country would not accept only "grants with conditions" from the European bloc.
Purisima said the government would heed the President's policy regarding the acceptance of foreign assistance.
"[Our considerations of accepting assistance] are the need and the kind that will be given. And of course, the policy direction. We understand that there are certain pronouncements made by the President regarding certain matters," Purisima said.
"Of course, we're duty-bound to follow those policies. But these are going to be evaluated in that support group. And we will periodically release information as to which donations we’ve accepted," he added. (SunStar Philippines)