Lacson: Aquino should ‘deal with MILF’ too

Bea Cupin

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Lacson: Aquino should ‘deal with MILF’ too
‘To care about the peace process and nothing more, I don’t think it speaks well of the commander-in-chief,’ says former PNP chief Panfilo Lacson

MANILA, Philippines – If there’s one thing former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Panfilo Lacson thinks the President failed to do in the wake of a bloody police operation that claimed the lives of 67 people, it was “[dealing] with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)” from the get-go.

The police operation, dubbed “Oplan Exodus” is the bloodiest one-day operation in PNP history and is the biggest crisis to hit President Benigno Aquino III’s administration.

Lacson, who served Aquino as post-Typhoon Yolanda rehabilitation chief for over a year, said Aquino should have immediately held the MILF accountable during his first public address.

“[The President] had a strong message to the SAF that they did not coordinate but the President seemed to have forgotten that 44 of their men perished in that incident. Personally, I was waiting for him to also deal with the MILF but I never heard that. I was thinking: if you have a message to the PNP, you might as well have a message to the MILF,” Lacson told Rappler in a March 23 interview on #RapplerTalk.

Lacson added Aquino should have “assumed responsibility” for the bungled operation, following different reports from an independent police board and the Senate committee probing the incident.

Aquino, who the Palace insists already took responsibility for the incident, is not yet done explaining his role in the operation, his spokespersons also said. (READ: Aquino apology? ‘What’s so difficult about that?’ – FVR)

But during a dialogue with religious leaders in Malacañang, Aquino insisted it was Napeñas who was ultimately liable for the botched operation. “If I were at fault, why would I not take responsibility?” said Aquino, when asked if Napeñas was merely a scapegoat.

But “there’s nothing wrong for a leader to assume responsibility for unfortunate incidents that involve your own people,” said Lacson.

On March 21, close to two months after “Oplan Exodus,” Aquino said his “fault,” if any, was trusting in Purisima and Napeñas to follow his orders.

Aquino’s role

Close to 400 PNP Special Action Force (SAF) troopers entered Mamasapano town in Maguindanao on January 25, in a mission to neutralize two terrorists.

As 73 of the SAF troopers were trying to make their exit, an encounter against fighters from the MILF, its breakaway group the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), and private armed groups ensued.

Five civilians, 18 MILF fighters, and 44 SAF troopers never left the fields of Mamasapano alive.

The PNP Board of Inquiry (BOI) report said Aquino “allowed” the participation of his friend, suspended and now-resigned PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima, despite the latter’s preventive suspension over a graft case.

FRIENDS. Resigned PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima and President Benigno Aquino III during an event in Camp Crame. File photo by Rey Baniquet/Malacañang Photo Bureau

The BOI report also said Aquino “bypassed” the PNP’s chain of command when he used his prerogative to deal with sacked PNP SAF chief Police Director Getulio Napeñas directly instead of going through PNP officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina, who took over the PNP following Purisima’s suspension.

The Senate committee’s draft report was much harder on Aquino, tagging him as “ultimately responsible” for the deaths in Mamasapano.

Lacson said the release of the two reports should have prompted Aquino to “own up” to the operation.

“It could have been a good opportunity for him to make amends and say: yes, the BOI report has already been submitted, it’s out and [so is] the Senate report,” said Lacson. 

“Assuming responsibility does not automatically mean admitting liability. Those are two different things,” he added.

Following the release of the BOI’s findings, the first comprehensive report on the incident, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima and Presidential Spokesman Secretary Edwin Lacierda released separate statements to reject the claims made in the report, particularly when it came to Aquino’s command responsibility.

Lacson admitted he has had “short” and “insignificant” conversations with Aquino “touching on Mamasapano” but said he was “not at liberty” to give any details about their exchanges.

Talking peace

The government has been working on a peace deal with the MILF, which would eventually lead to a new autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao.

But following the clash, support for the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law – both in Congress and the public – has waned, with some government officials doubting the sincerity of the MILF.

HISTORIC DEAL. Philippine President Benigno Aquino III and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak witness the exchange of documents following the signing of a final peace agreement between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front on March 27, 2014. File photo by Dennis Sabangan/EPA

To Lacson, the peace deal should not have come between the President taking to task the MILF for their role in the clash.

“You can pause for a while and not necessary discard the peace talks but when you address the nation, [you say]: let’s resolve all these issues first then we go back to talking peace with the MILF,” said the former senator.

“To care about the peace process and nothing more, I don’t think it speaks well of the commander-in-chief,” added Lacson.

Aquino has been criticized for what many are calling the government’s “mishandling” of the Mamasapano incident. The President’s trust and approval ratings have dipped following the operation.

For Lacson, who has seen the many ups and downs of the young police force, one of the things Aquino should have immediately attended to is the morale of the 150,000-strong PNP.

“If some of my men died as heroes defending democracy, defending peace and order, and then you hear from your commander-in-chief a message that seemed to be an indictment of the institution but without a message or the same message to the other side [MILF]. It’s demoralizing,” he added. – Rappler.com

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Bea Cupin

Bea is a senior multimedia reporter who covers national politics. She's been a journalist since 2011 and has written about Congress, the national police, and the Liberal Party for Rappler.