Busy Presidente? Roxas to appear in Senate probe

MANILA, Philippines – Doctors who reportedly had such a hard time reaching Interior Secretary Mar Roxas will finally have a chance to see the man they called “busy presidente.”

Roxas is among the confirmed guests in the Senate probe into the bombing in Cagayan de Oro City that left 8 dead and 46 injured, including doctors.

The Senate public order and dangerous drugs committee announced that it invited Roxas, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Alan Purisima, and representatives of medical groups to the hearing on Wednesday, August 7.

Philippine Medical Association (PMA) president Dr Leo Olarte was also invited to the inquiry. Olarte had reportedly criticized Roxas, saying his group could not reach the secretary to talk to him about the security of doctors.

READ: Doctors ask: ‘Busy presidente Mar Roxas, nasaan ka?’

Most of the victims of the bombing were doctors and pharmaceutical salesmen who had just attended a convention in the Grand Caprice hotel at the Limketkai Center, where the July 26 bombing occurred at a bistro.

Olarte was quoted as saying in a forum on Monday, “But in the many times we tried to call Secretary Mar Roxas, we could not reach him. Until now, we still cannot contact him so we were really saddened we could not talk to our Busy Presidente.”

The term was a play on the words vice president, a post Roxas lost to Jejomar Binay in 2010.

Olarte though later said that t-shirts and stickers bearing the words “busy presidente” were not “endorsed by the PMA.”

Roxas said he did not receive any communication from the PMA. He also said he was in the bombing site “the next day in less than 24 hours and providing guidance and direction to the efforts.”

Sen Grace Poe, chairperson of the public order committee, said the investigation aims to check whether or not laws need to be updated to avoid similar incidents.

Just weeks later, another blast in Cotabato City killed 8 people on Monday.

“Maybe our laws are so old that’s why we do not know these intelligence reports or we’re unable to immediately act on them. Second, we also want to ensure that we gather evidence properly because if we cannot ensure that the evidence-gathering was thorough, it will be hard to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice,” Poe told reporters on Tuesday, August 6.

Roxas and Purisima earlier clashed on the cleaning of the crime scene. Purisima cleared the policemen who allowed the clean-up while Roxas expressed dissatisfaction.

Besides Roxas, Purisima and Olarte, the following were also invited to the Senate hearing:

• Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar Moreno
• Dr Aileen Aniceto, President of the Philippine College of Chest Physicians, Northern Mindanao Chapter
• Dr Priscilla Caguioa, President of the Philippine College of Physicians
• Dante Jimenez, President of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption
• Alfonso Lim, President and CEO of Limketkai Center
• Imelda Agustin, widow of Dr Marciano Alberto Agustin III

The probe is the first Senate inquiry in the 16th Congress. It comes after Sen Aquilino Pimentel III delivered a privilege speech last week condemning the bombing and urging authorities to immediately solve the case. Pimentel hails from Cagayan de Oro City.  

Police have yet to identify the perpetrators behind the attack but a report of a risk control organization said the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) was the likely suspect.

The BIFF is a breakaway group of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which is engaged in peace talks with the government.

Cotabato blast a terror attack?

Even before the Senate and the police could get to the bottom of the Cayagan de Oro bombing, the Cotabato blast raised more questions about the peace and order situation in parts of Mindanao.

Sen Gregorio Honasan II, a former military officer, called on the PNP to look into the terrorism angle in the Cotabato bombing.

Police are exploring the possibility that bombers targeted City Administrator Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi, whose vehicle was passing by when the bomb exploded.

“There are indications that what happened was probably because of political rivalries or personal attacks but we should not forget that this is the second incident in just 10 days,” Honasan said in a statement on Tuesday.

Honasan said the Cotabato bombing highlighted the need to urgently tighten security measures in Mindanao. He added that the blast will likely be tackled in the Senate’s probe into the Cagayan de Oro bombing.

Pimentel and Poe also condemned the Cotabato bombing. Poe said it should be resolved “amid a global terror threat.”

Over the weekend, at least 25 US embassies and consular offices were ordered closed in response to a terror threat. Intelligence reports warned that an Al-Qaeda attack may be imminent.

For Senate defense committee chairman Antonio Trillanes IV, the public should not immediately blame the police and the military for possible lapses.

“Nag-provide ba ng resources for intelligence ng AFP and PNP? Maglaan ng enough resources to conduct intelligence para maiwasan ang ganitong pagsabog.” (Did they allocate enough resources for intelligence of the AFP and PNP? They should give enough resources to avoid explosions like this.)

A former navy officer and coup plotter, Trillanes said he will push for a bigger intelligence budget for the AFP and PNP during budget deliberations. – Rappler.com