A MALACAÑANG official has reminded about jumping into conclusions regarding the alleged special treatment provided for detained four members of the Ampatuan clan in General Santos City.
Deputy Presidential spokesman Gary Olivar in a briefing on Tuesday said accounts about VIP treatment granted to Maguindanao massacre suspects remain unverified and still subject to investigation.
Olivar said some of the points to be considered in the investigation include "rules and regulation governing the detention cell" and if the alleged behavior of the Ampatuans have defied any rule at Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) jail in Camp Fermin Lira in General Santos City where they have been held.
Reports said the high-profile suspects have been allowed to use cell phones, feast catered food while in detention and even leave detention cells.
The four accused are suspended Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (Armm) governor Zaldy Ampatuan, former Maguindanao acting governor Sajid Ampatuan, Maguindanao Vice Governor Akmad Ampatuan, and Shariff Aguak Mayor Anwar Ampatuan. They were charged with rebellion along with 600 of their men in relation to the November 23 massacre of least 57 people in Maguindanao.
CIDG Director Raul Castañeda, who heads the police unit holding the four massacre suspects, has earlier said that he sees nothing wrong with the action of his men considering that they have yet to be convicted.
But for Olivar, the CIDG should lay down its rules and regulations to be able to discern which actions were violative of the rule and which were not.
"The extent of the use of cell phones, I think, we need more clarity on that-both as a matter of rules and with respect to this particular case. Catering, food arrangements, again, we have not seen yet the... you know, any disclosure about what the appropriate rules are," the palace official said.
He said the CIDG head should have waited for the final result of the investigation rather than justifying the behavior of the Ampatuans.
He meanwhile said the Palace is confident that the CIDG will continue its investigation and that Castaneda's statement would not imply that he is clearing the Ampatuans from the issue just yet.
"I don't think that amounts to a wholesale or premature clearance of the personnel involved. I think he's just taking these into the rules and he's going to look at it and see exactly what happened and see, if at all, those rules are violated-that's my impression of what he said," Olivar said.
The family of the massacre victims -- Mangungudatu clan -- has also requested an investigation into the allegations of coddling the Ampatuans.
In light of the VIP treatment issue, some senators have accused the President of still having close ties with the Ampatuans and have a hand in pampering them. Olivar brushed off this claim saying that Arroyo's critics are using this issue as another attack against her.
"So this is the kind of inflammatory language that I hope we will see less especially in relation to this particular judicial proceeding," he said, adding that the President has nothing to say to the Ampatuans regarding the charges they are facing. (Jill Beltran/Sunnex)