HIGHLIGHTS: President’s message on Maguindanao clash

MANILA, Philippines – On Wednesday evening, January 28, President Benigno Aquino III addressed the nation, speaking for the first time on the clash between elite cops and Muslim rebels that killed dozens from the government side in Maguindanao.

Though Malacañang did not specify the topic of the address, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr said it is “likely” Aquino will discuss the Maguindanao incident. 

On January 25, Sunday, some 392 Special Action Forces (SAF) commandos entered Mamasapano town in Maguindanao, targeting two “high value targets,” one of them alleged Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir, better known as “Marwan.” The bloody clash between the SAF and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) led to the deaths of at least 44 cops.

On Monday, Malacañang said Aquino received the news with “logic and objectivity.” It also defended the peace process amid calls to abandon it following what the government has tagged as a “misencounter” with the other party in the peace talks.

In his message on Wednesday, Aquino was expected to continue pushing for the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), which has been hailed by the administration as one of its biggest achievements.

So far, two senators have withdrawn as authors of the proposed BBL, Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano and Senator Joseph Victor Ejercito, because of the incident.

Watch his address below. – Rappler.com