instrumental (piano)
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
SUDDENLY THEY ALL BECOME WARM
Local and
My height is no match to those photographers and cameramen so I decided to move back away from makeshift tent to have a better view.
As I was retreating, I heard a familiar voice calling my name.
I look back and there’s Major General Reuben Rafael, chief of Task Force Comet. He was smiling and making signal to approach him which I did.
He whispered a joke saying, “I heard you were banned by CSAFP, is that true?”
So I informed him straight face that I never heard General Esperon issuing such order but several officials confirmed that Brig. General Juancho Sabban issued directive to his junior officers in Basilan.
They know because they were among those who were given the instructions.
I said those words in front of Western Mindanao Command chief Major General Nelson Allaga and I even turned the tables then saying why not asked the chief here.
Allaga in turned smiles but turned a bit apologetic explaining why he was not able to answer my call last week.
“I saw your calls several times but I cannot answer because I was in Zamboanga del Sur during the visit of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo,” Allaga explained.
I do understand Allaga because I knew Arroyo’s visit was September 16 and 17, besides Sabban’s reported banning me from coverage in Basilan was issued on September 18, 2007.
Even Brig. General Ruperto Pabustan, chief of Special Forces in Sulu who was reportedly mad at me because of the story I did about 8 minors subjected to psychological torture greeted me with a warm smile.
While we were talking, suddenly Esperon appeared behind so I immediately made myself scarce and continued my work.
During the Sulu Provincial Capitol activity, I intentionally cornered Esperon and interviewed him if indeed he issued such order as claimed by Sabban.
As far as I can remember, Sabban verbalized such claim to Major General Ben Dolorfino, the Philippine Marine Corps commandant in the morning of September 18, 2007 while they were having a closed door meeting at Tabiawan, Isabela City Basilan.
Dolorfino told me that it was Sabban who expressed that claim, “but I didn’t believe him (that Esperon could issue such order).”
So back to Esperon this is what he actually told me while I was doing my chance interview. We were all rushing for time so he granted an interview while we were proceeding inside
Esperon was smiling as usual and at first he told reporters that “Thank you, thank you.”
But I was a bit persistent so I asked him this question. “Sir, is it true I am banned?”
“Laugh… you cannot limit press freedom, then laugh, without losing it. It’s very basic in our democracy. I don’t know what report you have on that? Are you banned? No.”
Knowing Esperon for about 10 years and doing coverage while he was once a ground commander, he only got irked when I pursued the issue about how intelligent is the intelligence community of the AFP.
Esperon if he dislikes my stories, he never got to a point of banning me from coverage even during his term as 103rd Army Brigade commander in Basilan in 2002.
FRUIT OF IMAGINATION
I read the CMFR report. I wanted to laugh when I read the portion of Sabban’s side where he claimed I need attention and dreaming up things.
First I don’t sleepwalk. I am not into day dreaming or suffering from lack of attention and I don’t think his junior officers under his so-called Thunder turf were also dreaming when they heard Sabban’s directive on September 18, 2007. I don’t think General Dolorfino was dreaming when Sabban informed him about the “banning order.”
I was not also dreaming when journalists and officers proceeded to the mess hall on September 18, 2007 when everyone was partaking Sabban’s prepared lunch and I was sitting in one of the couches facing him eating my own “baon” a bottled juice and chips.
If I was dreaming as Sabban claimed “pinakain pa namin siya” in one of interviews by Joel Guinto, probably my fellow journalists could have woken me up.
Roel Pareno of Philippine Star and Leila Vicente of ABS-CBN Zamboanga City were there to attest and witnessed that I didn’t take anything even a single drop of water from the mess hall of Thunder.
Pareno, Vicente and Major Minandang Macatoon (one of Sabban’s men) even repeatedly invited me to join them partaking the lunch which I politely turned down explaining them that I am still full and I am on a diet.
When Sabban claimed to Guinto that he fed me, that’s what you call dreaming things or “simpleng bagay na nga lang magsisinungaling pa.”
No harassment? For me its still harassment when his intelligence guys approached me and even inquired my relationship to the four year old boy.
I am not imagining or dreaming up things when we were at the third floor of the
I and my son were not imagining things when strangers approached me, played around and carried my son and later informed me that I was wanted by their commander (Sabban) and inquiring me who were my sources.
Lack attention? Why would I need attention? I am not a toddler like my 4 year old son that needs real attention and care.
I don’t need attention to publish my accomplishments so I will get promotion. I am very much contented with my life as journalist. They label me with names and as I said earlier, I don’t care with labels, call me leftist then fine, at least they can never label me “envelopmentalist” and I don’t contact influential people to settle problems.
In fact I live an ordinary life and I am satisfied with what I have, my son and my own home.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Inquirer reporter banned from Basilan coverage
September 21, 2007
A reporter of the Philippine Daily Inquirer has been banned by the military from covering its operations in the battle-scarred island province of Basilan, a report reaching Luwaran today. The reporter was identified as Julie S. Alipala, who drew the ire of the military for her reports on “military abuses and lapses in its operations”.
Philippine Marines commandant Major General Ben Dolorfino has confirmed that Zamboanga Inquirer correspondent Julie S. Alipala has been banned by the military from covering its operations in Basilan.
The report was received by the Media Safety Office of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines and International Federation of Journalists.
Alipala wrote an article on the August 18 clash in Unkaya Pukan town in Basilan, where 15 Marines were killed by the Abu Sayyaf.
Since then, the report said, Alipala received threats and warned by colleagues to be extra careful.
Meanwhile, Khaled Musa, deputy chairman of the MILF Committee on Information, expressed his concern for the “arm-twisting approach” of the military, saying instead of banning Alipala, they should conduct an inquiry into the veracity of the reported abuses and lapses.
“It is good that there are still courageous media people out there who can say straight in the eye of the military that ‘they, are problems in your ranks in the field’”, he said.
He suggested that instead of banning and castigating the poor reporter, the military should investigate and if her report has no basis then she can be liable for libel and should be charged in court, but there is enough evidence of her report then she should be commended
He further commented that by banning Alipala will only strengthen her credential as a true journalist, who vowed to uphold the truth at all times, and on the other hand reinforces the perception that the military is hiding something from the public and has indeed committed that abuses and lapses.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
AFP: Learning from Mistakes?
By Julie S. Alipala in Zamboanga City
Sunday, 29 July 2007
Sunday, 29 July 2007
This is not the first time that the Marines have been beheaded in Basilan. Why did it happen again?
"It could have been avoided."
These are the words of some military and Basilan local government officials referring to the July 10 killing and beheading of 10 Marine soldiers and wounding of about 15 others.
Avoided, that is, if the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has learned from past mistakes.
But such lessons apparently have to be shelved to get justice for the 10 brutally slain soldiers of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 8 and of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 6.Government last week poured in more troops in Basilan, from two battalions of Marines to about five battalions, and two more from the Army.
Last Friday, President Arroyo arrived in this city for two closed-door meetings. She was wearing a fatigue military vest, a sign that the nation's chief executive is geared up for war.
The first meeting was with the local government executives of Basilan and of this city, held at the Edwin Andrews Air Base. The other was with top military and police officials at Camp Don Basilio Navarro.
Arroyo, thru AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr., approved their requests, granting a three-day investigation for the joint GRP-MILF CCCH or Philippine government-Moro Islamic Liberation Front coordinating committee for the cessation of hostilities, emergency procurement of more artillery, and declaring Tuesday, July 31, as D-day for the serving of warrants of arrest against some 130 respondents reportedly responsible for the beheading of 10 Marine soldiers.
Past Beheadings
The last time the Marines met a similar fate was in February 1993 when 21 Marine officers and soldiers were mutilated, and four beheaded in an encounter with the Moro National Liberation Front in Tuburan town in Basilan.
Dorie Kalahal, a former MNLF commander now Tuburan mayor, recalled that the incident happened when he was a commander of the 2nd Mobile Army Command of the MNLF.
As he sat through the dialogue with President Arroyo and military officials, he told this writer that “it’s as if the past is being forcibly resurrected."
Kalahal expressed apprehension that the military might launch an operation that would not only hit their targets but innocent civilians and those who were earlier branded as enemies of the state like him.
Kalahal claimed that like the July 10 incident, he was also wrongly accused as the leader behind the beheadings in 1993.
Lt. Colonel Rudy de Bellen, a Marine officer, recalled that the Marines, about a platoon, belonged to 1st Marine Battalion under Lt. Colonel Rodolfo Calayo. The battalion's intelligence officer then was 1st Lt. Ramiro Alivio who is now the Marine brigade commander in Basilan.
"The truth is, we had an encounter with the Marines but we didn’t behead them because we left after the battle, taking their firearms," Kalahal recalled.
But the firefight prompted lawless elements to proceed to the area, where they found the slain soldiers, Kalahal said.
What followed was a nightmare for innocent civilians. More than hundreds of houses were burned, Kahalal said, and "thousands were evacuated. Casualties on both sides were high.”
Kalahal was granted amnesty (dissolving all previous charges) five years after the incident in Tuburan and after the signing of peace agreement between the GRP and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996. MNLF chairman Nur Misuari then justified that the Marines were killed in a legitimate encounter.
"Why are we seeing a repeat of 1993 when it’s now quiet in Basilan?” Kahalal said. “Let’s go back to the past and learn from it.”
An Army general intimately familiar with Basilan said, "We never learn from past mistakes."
Tipo-tipo (which used to be one town) has always been known as hostile to any visitors thus the need for clear coordination. "It was known as hostile to soldiers and even to members of the Abu Sayyaf. I have never encountered reports that the ASG stayed in that place or had any engagement with the MILF against our forces," the general, who requested not to be identified, said.
Absence of Coordination
Lantawan mayor Tahira Ismael said the July 10 incident is a product of lack or absence of coordination between the military and local executives.
"It’s been more than five years since we had a firefight in Basilan," Ismael said, blaming the AFP for not coordinating with the local officials in conducting search or rescue operations.
Col. Alivio, commander of the 1st Marine Brigade, emphasized that they coordinated with authorities and “we performed our duties based on directives."
In defense of Alivio, Marine Corps commandant Maj.Gen. Nelson Allaga told NEWSBREAK on July 13 during his visit to Basilan that "non-coordination is not an issue here when we have been coordinating regularly with local and national leaders."
"What happened (on July 10, 2007) was pure treachery and barbarism and somebody has to be answerable for this carnage," Allaga said.
However, two top members of the Basilan ceasefire local monitoring team, (LMT) Ramon Nunal Jr., and his counterpart Bas Sattar Ali of the MILF, confirmed there was no such coordination. Ali said the Marines were informed about the need for coordination in getting inside the three towns, Albarka, Tipo-tipo Central and Muhamad Ajul.
"We've been in close contact with some officers of the Marines, but it seems that our voices were never heard," Ali added.
Ghosts of the Past
Local physician Nilo Barandino who is doing post mortem examination on slain soldiers and civilians in Basilan told NEWSBREAK that he encountered about 70 beheadings since the early 1980s.
"It's a trademark for Basilan bandits to behead their captives whether civilian or soldier, and its sad because it still happening until now," Barandino said.
Of the 70 cadavers he handled for medico-legal examination, a big percentage belonged to AFP, "and I don't include those hostages and kidnapped victims who were beheaded before."
Col. Daniel Lucero recalled that when he was a 2nd Lieutenant of the 5th Infantry Battalion, seven soldiers were mutilated, some beheaded way back in February 1984 in Barangay Duga-a, Tuburan town.
Two other soldiers of the 55th Infantry Battalion were beheaded in Barangay Sinulatan, also in Tuburan in July of 2001. Lucero was then a battalion commander of the 18th Infantry Battalion.
No More Amnesty
Esperon during a press briefing at the Edwin Andrews Air Base in this city last Friday said the government has already drawn some lessons.
"We must go full force and steadfast and uncompromising in punishing the beheaders. The more that we allow this to pass without getting punished, we will be indeed be encouraging more beheadings. It's not a matter of who perpetrated it, its just a matter of punishing them so that people will not think that it is perfectly all right to behead,” Esperon said.
He insisted that Basilan remains an AFP model for counterinsurgency. Other than the ambush incident in Albarka, "it is still a peaceful place."
In 2001 and 2002, the Abu Sayyaf fled Basilan after US and Philippine forces decimated the group’s leaders. Civic action—wherein US and local troops built bridges, school buildings, water wells, and conducted medical missions—helped make the island a model for neighboring provinces like Sulu.
National Security Adviser Secretary Norberto Gonzales said there will be "no more amnesty for beheaders this time and in the future."
Gonzales was referring to the amnesty granted to some 20 MNLF rebels responsible for the February 1993 incident in Tuburan.
Aside from these lessons, two Marine officials, Lt. Col. Felix Almadrones, commander of MBLT 8 and his operations officer Maj. Nelson Marcelino were immediately relieved from their posts. A ranking Marine officer said that the troops committed a “tactical blunder.” They were operating on wrong intelligence information that the kidnapped Italian priest Giancarlo Bossi was in that part of Basilan. At that time, he was in Lanao del Norte.
Basilan Congressman Wahab Akbar expressed satisfaction with the way Esperon and Arroyo have handled the situation.
Akbar has been vocal against the return of the Marines to the province.
Esperon confirmed that a new brigade has been formed, the 105th Army Brigade, under Col. Noel Coballes and that it will be deployed soon to Basilan.
Coballes is not giving actual figures of Army troops for the island but said "substantial force will be injected in the province, the Special Forces, Scout Rangers, Army battalions and the militia forces.”
Poor Planning, Troop Burnout Caused Twin Tragedy in By Julie S. Alipala in Zamboanga City Wednesday, 15 August 2007
Beheading in Basilan, however, is mainly political.
Tactical errors, lapses—these are now commonly used words in the Armed Forces of the Philippines—and they appear to be the
most convenient excuses for the recent setbacks in Sulu and Basilan. (Click here to see the location of Basilan island through Google Maps.)
Beheading in Basilan, however, is mainly political.
Tactical errors, lapses—these are now commonly used words in the Armed Forces of the Philippines—and they appear to be the
most convenient excuses for the recent setbacks in Sulu and Basilan. (Click here to see the location of Basilan island through Google Maps.) But our findings show that poor planning and tired troops are key factors in the military debacle.
A couple of weeks ago, the AFP blamed the death of 14 Marine soldiers (July 10, 2007) in Basilan to the wrong radio frequency because rescue forces couldn’t get their location. Ten of the 14 were mutilated and beheaded while 15 others were injured. The beheading, Newsbreak learned, was driven by political reasons. The Marines strictly enforced the gun ban before the elections and angered local politicians.
Later, the ambush on August 9 at Maimbung town in Sulu (click here to view location through Google Maps), wherein 10 Army soldiers were killed, was attributed to the failure to provide back-up security escorts. In a matter of days, casualties increased to a total of 27 soldiers killed and 12 wounded.
Armed Forces chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr and Western Mindanao Command chief Lt. General Eugenio Cedo agree that tactical errors are the reasons for the heavy casualties of the military in these two provinces of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
However, an Army colonel and a junior officer we talked to expressed dismay over the outcome of multi-million pesos worth of military operations. They blame the main planners and recommend stripping them of their star ranks. "The high error percentage is unacceptable given that this caused the lives of 42 soldiers in a span of 30 days," the Army officer said.
Both of our sources requested not to be identified because they are not authorized to speak on the issue.
The junior officer, with the rank of lieutenant, says military planners are likened to licensed engineers: "They conceive first the idea, then plan and map all factors such as safety, zoning of areas, logistics, supplies and resources, workers, funding and then construction. Once a mild crack is noticed on a structure, engineers may face serious consequences. This is investigated and if the engineers are found to have been reckless, their licenses are cancelled."
Unfortunately these procedures don't apply to the main planners of the AFP, the young lieutenant lamented.
Tactical Blunder
In 2005, the Panamao attack—where the military operation against the ASG dragged on for about 10 days—resulted in the death of about 40 soldiers and an officer, Colonel Dennis Villanueva.
However, according to an intelligence officer, "the margin of error in 2005 is quite acceptable because the operation lasted more than a week. But the error committed in the recent operation wherein 27 are dead within 10 hours is unimaginable. It's basically a tactical blunder."
The AFP has seen better days. In 2003, for example, soldiers captured Abu Sayyaf leaders Mujib Susukan and Galib Andang aka Kumander Robot in Sulu. A resident, Fatmawati Salapuddin, remembers it well: "It was very laudable as the AFP then conducted the operation quietly, they didn't employ thousands of troops and they didn't use high-powered artilleries and bombs and no one was displaced."
In Basilan last year, the military launched successful operations against the Abu Sayyaf, making them flee to the nearby island of Sulu.
Today, the AFP has sent more than 6,000 troops to pursue less then 500 armed elements in Sulu and Basilan.
Tired Troops
Weeks without rest are taking their toll on the soldiers.
Wilfreda Potoy, mother of slain Private First Class Rico Potoy, gunner of Bravo Company of the 33rd Infantry Battalion, received a text message from her eldest son on August 8, 2007 saying he's exhausted from their operation.
“Father, mother I am going home on August 12. I am very tired. Almost everyday, there's operation, morning, at night. We keep on operating 10 days straight, I want to rest," Rico said in his message.
Rico Potoy was among the 16 killed in an encounter on August 9 in Maimbung.
Wilfreda's youngest son, Private Astor "Jojo" Potoy Jr, also of 33rd IB confirmed that their unit operated without rest since the first of August.
Total battle casualties incurred in the August 8 and 9 encounters were 2. Twelve others were wounded of whom three are in critical condition.
Task Force Comet chief Maj. Gen. Reuben Rafael told Newsbreak that their enemies, combined Abu Sayyaf and "rogue" Moro National Liberation Front fighters, incurred 37 killed in action but only 10 bodies were recovered. Of the 10, only four were identified.
Widow Sara Hashim wife of slain Private First Class Daim Hashim, native of Jolo, told Newsbreak that her husband was a non-combatant. Sara, speaking in Filipino said, "My husband worked as carpenter of the 33rd Infantry Battalion, part of the non-operating troops.”
Hashim’s best friend, Private First Class Kaisar Hassan, who was also killed, was sort of an all-around personnel at the battalion, cleaning bunkers, weeding grasses, preparing coffee.
“They lacked people as everyone was in the operation,” Sara said.
How it Started
As early as August 2, Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan reported that several families were displaced in Indanan town due to renewed military campaign against the Abu Sayyaf Group. But the military kept mum about this.
Indanan field social worker Christopher Lee confirmed that on August 2, several residents scampered for safety seeing the arrival of soldiers "who later established positions in the communities, thus residents abandoned their houses for fear of being caught in the crossfire."
On August 7, two junior officers of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 11 were wounded in an Indanan clash. Still, officials of the Western Mindanao Command kept silent.
A day later, Comet chief Rafael confirmed the report in Indanan including the wounding of five others from the 33rd Infantry Battalion. One was killed, identified as Private First Class Stevencent Ballares.
"The Army troopers clashed with about 50 heavily armed Abu Sayyaf Group. We have recovered four dead from the Abu Sayyaf side," Rafael said.
However, Hatimil Hasan, interim vice chair of the MNLF sounded the alarm over the incident: “There are no members or leaders of the Abu Sayyaf killed, all those slain were bonafide members and commander of the MNLF Parang Municipal Command." Hasan identified the slain commander as Jeili Habbi, chair of MNLF Parang. A son and two other close-in security, all MNLF fighters, were killed.
MNLF Coddling Abu Sayyaf?
Apparently, the military suspects the MNLF of harboring ASG members.
Ustadz Habib Zain Jali, MNLF spiritual adviser, said he was informed by fighters on the ground that Habbi, the slain MNLF chair who is more than 60 years old, was roused from sleep early dawn, went out to inspect the surrounding, "along with his son and two others and as he opened the gate, a burst of fire greeted him."
"We lost seven comrades,” said Hasan, who is also concurrent speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the ARMM.
He revealed that prior to the August 8 attack, "soldiers in three truckloads encircled camp of Ustadz Khaid (Adjibun)," chair of the MNLF State Revolutionary Command based in Indanan.
Two wounded Army soldiers of the 33rd Infantry Battalion corroborated Hassan’s statements.
Private First Class Muhamil Hassan (not related to Hatimil Hasan) of the lead squad unit said that on the dawn of August 7, they were informed by their commander to execute a highly sensitive mission in Parang, Sulu. They jumped off before five o’clock in the morning of August 8 to the said area and Hassan was directed to lead an advance unit.
"Our mission was to go after Albader Parad and Doktor Abu (who are Abu Sayyaf) but when we arrived, it was the MNLF," Hassan said but quickly added that "the Abu Sayyaf and MNLF may have combined forces because that’s what’s been talked about."
Private First Class Abdulhari Bittong, a native of Parang, admits he was briefed about the mission but was unaware of the objective.
Bittong said that when they reached their destination, "I was surprised because it was the house of MNLF Commander Jeili. The rebels were in ambush position, then there was an exchange of gunfire, at close range. We were about 20 meters from the rebels, that’s why I know who we were fighting against."
When Bittong asked why he knew some of his targets and the slain commander, he said that he used to be with them since he is an integree, one of the former MNLF fighters who joined the AFP.
Commander Jeili is known in the community and maintained several fighters.
MNLF Not Demobilized
"The military violated the peace agreement,” Hassan said. “They attacked camps of the MNLF in Indanan and Parang and it's our right to defend our territory."
Hasan confirmed that the Bangsamoro Army was responsible for the August 9 ambush on government troops in Maimbung initially resulting in 10 killed and one wounded.
"We can’t accept that we are being attacked by the AFP, we don’t know what their objective is," Adjibun said after a series of dialogues initiated by the AFP and MNLF ground commanders.
From August 2 to 6, troops of Task Group Philippine Marine Corps along with Joint Special Operations Force encircled Indanan forcing the MNLF to abandon their last and recognized territory.
On August 8, 2007 elements of 33rd Infantry Battalion raided the house of MNLF Parang Chair Jeili Habbi. Habbi and three other MNLF fighters were killed.
Before that, MNLF commander Ustadz Habier Malik declared jihad on April 13 against the Armed Forces when he got confirmation that troops of Joint Special Operations under Col. Ruperto Pabustan were responsible for the death of a teenager on February 19, 2007 in Indanan.
The teenager turned out to be the grandson of an MNLF commander who was killed in a declared "free fire zone" area of Indanan.
However, Pabustan insisted the boy was an Abu Sayyaf: "Why on earth was he there late that night if he is not a bandit. He was killed in a legitimate encounter."
But a probe conducted by the Commission on Human Rights showed that the boy was with another male companion on their way home after watching a TV soap opera.
In late April, 2nd Marine Brigade commander Col. Ceasario Atienza took control of Camp Jabal Uhod of the MNLF in Panamao.
Basilan: Marines vs Politicians
In Basilan, it’s different. Some link the Sulu tragedy to Basilan's carnage but reasons for the clashes differ.
While the MILF admitted they ambused the Marines in July—who were then searching for the kidnapped Italian priest—they said that they did not behead the soldiers.
The reasons for the beheading of the Marines are mainly political. An independent investigation by a group of foreign and Filipino women organized by the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict-Southeast Asia (GPPAC-SEA) and the Mindanao Peace Weavers (MPW) showed that “issues related to politics are among the factors that contributed to the deterioration of peace and security in the island province."
Newsbreak learned that the beleaguered unit of the Philippine Marines during the July 10 incident in Albarka town earned a reputation as the most stringent unit when it comes to gun ban enforcement.
The slain soldiers were actively involved in enforcing the firearm ban, according to Lt. Col. Felix Almadrones who heads the Marine unit deployed to confiscate loose firearms.
The Marines started to implement the gun ban in April, as mandated by the Commission on Elections, in the run up to the May 14 election.
The Marines reported that assorted firearms were apprehended from politicians but identities were not indicated. In April and May, the unit confiscated several firearms and rounds of ammunition reportedly owned by politicians in the area.
In July 5, the unit encountered suspected members of the Abu Sayyaf Group and recovered one more firearm.
No Sacred Cows
Local officials attest to the dedication and determination of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 8 (MBLT8), headed by Almadrones, in trying to clean the province of loose firearms that have been the cause of lawlessness and banditry for a long time.
Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay said the sincerity of the said unit is indisputable. “They didn’t have sacred cows. If anyone violated the law, whoever he or she was, they were treated equally."
Basilan Bishop Martin Jumoad said that "they were very faithful to their work, they were just following orders and doing their mission and were known as uncompromising against illegal activities."
Jumoad said the unit was firm in their campaign against loose firearms. “They arrested and seized guns even if they belonged to the followers of influential politicians like Gerry Salapuddin or Wahab Akbar."
Naval Forces Western Mindanao Command chief Rear Admiral Emilio Marayag said that "our soldiers in Basilan were able to apprehend more firearms in just a span of four months in the area compared to other units that have been assigned to this island for more than three years."
Party-list Rep. Mujiv Hataman (Anak-Mindanao) confirmed that Almadrones’ unit "was very rigid in performing their mission they were not afraid to disarm politicians or followers of politicians before and after the election."
Trace the Root Cause
Hataman believes that the root cause of the conflict "boils to one thing, the proliferation of loose firearms. The government's efforts to address this and personnel engaging in this campaign always end up in tragic incidents, relieved or demoted."
In 2001, Army personnel of 103rd Army Brigade also implemented the gun ban campaign. Hataman recalled that more firearms were recovered inside the Provincial Capitol Office when the governor was Wahab Akbar, now a congressman, and the Army official then was Col. Jovenal Narcise.
"Other than growing animosity, there was legal battle between the governor and the army official," Hataman said but the difference was, "Narcise didn't coordinate with his higher official while the Marines had prior coordination and they properly turned over the apprehended firearms to their higher officials."
"It's like rido (vengeance) against uniformed personnel, where armed groups tried to avenge their losses," Hataman said.
Rear Admiral Marayag suggested that the "Commission on Audit should conduct a probe on politicians like Akbar. He should explain how he was able to acquire firearms: are they government firearms or does he buy them using his own money?"
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