LAWMAKERS led by Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Friday renewed their call for the creation of a truth commission, which they say will determine the accountability of President Benigno Aquino III in the Jan. 25 encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, that resulted in the killing of 44 police commandos.
“The Commission will be able to find out the real truth behind the death of our [Special Action Force] 44 during the[ir] bloody encounter [with Muslim rebels],” said Romualdez, the leader of the House Independent Bloc.
He made his statement even as Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Friday she was optimistic her department could build strong cases against the members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front who killed the 44 police commandos.
She said she became more confident after she found a witness to the firefight during their inspection of the area where the firefight took place. She described the witness’ testimony as “very vital.”
“Our conclusion—and this is shared by all members of the team—is that the account of the witness matched the physical setup of the site,” De Lima said.
“We can say that this witness is very important because of what the person saw during the encounter.”
Romualdez and his bloc have authored House Resolution 1879 urging Aquino to order the creation of a Truth Commission that they say should be composed of representatives from both the Houses of Congress, the Commission on Human Rights, former Supreme Court justices, and representatives from the academe and other people from respected institutions.
Earlier, Romualdez said the commission should be the lone body investigating the Jan. 25 I incident to avoid confusing the public.
“If Malacañang wants the truth, then it should be at the forefront of bringing out the truth and a totally impartial panel like the Truth Commission is the best way to achieve that goal,” Romualdez said.
Abakada party-list Rep. Jonathan de la Cruz, a member of Romualdez’s group, said he believed the report submitted by the Philippine National Police’s Board of Inquiry “remains incomplete.” With Rey E. Requejo
Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate, a member of the Makabayan Bloc, shared De La Cruz’s view.
He batted for an independent body “to fully uncover the truth and seek accountability.” He said the police report did not show a complete picture of what happened in Mamasapano.
“For one, as an internal police mechanism, it failed to investigate the commander in chief, Benigno Simeon Aquino, who already jumped the gun by absolving himself of any accountability,” Zarate said.
“It also failed to get the cooperation of its suspended-cum-resigned [National Police] Chief Alan Purisima, and it also failed to cover the [Armed Forces of the Philippines].”
Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said the House of Representatives must immediately resume its own probe of the incident.
“The House leadership said that they will wait for the BOI report before resuming the congressional investigation. Now that the BOI report has been submitted to PNP officials and the DILG, there is no reason for Congress to delay the House probe any further,” Ridon said.
The BOI report has been submitted to PNP Officer-in-Charge Leonardo Espina and Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, but it has yet to be made public.
Ridon noted that in the extensive portions reported by the media, there were “glaring portions that raised further questions on Aquino and the United States government’s roles in “Oplan Exodus.”
“The House leadership cannot argue that the BOI report will already suffice to answer all questions about Oplan Exodus. Even the BOI admitted in parts of the report that they encountered certain limitations in their own investigation,” Ridon said.
Ridon also took note of “several limitations during their investigation” of the BOI as based the Mamasapano report published by the media, such as:
“The Mamasapano report failed to include direct inputs from certain key personalities. In particular, the Board failed to secure an interview with the President and Commander in Chief.
“Attempts to interview Police Director General Alan Purisima likewise did not materialize. In lieu of an interview, he submitted a sworn statement and a document containing an enumeration of his SMS exchanges with the President, AFP Chief of Staff General Gregorio Catapang, Guerrero and Napeñas.
“The BOI also observed that there appears to be an unusually long gap or an absence of SMS exchange between Purisima and the President after 11:39 am and before 06:20 pm.
“The BOI likewise lacked access to the specific details of the activities of the President on January 25, 2015 in Zamboanga City that could have shed light on the events prior to, during, and after the operation.” With Rey E. Requejo