Some families of the so-called ‘SAF 44’ held a protest in front of the office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City on Wednesday.
They are joined by members of the group Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC).
The protesters intend to file a motion for reconsideration following the Ombudsman’s filing of criminal complaints against Former President Noynoy Aquino.
The cases are in connection with the death of 44 members of the Philippine National Police–Special Action Forces (PNP-SAF) in a botched military operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on January 25, 2015.
The cops had clashed with members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and private armed groups as they were leaving Mamasapano after killing Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and Filipino cohort Basit Usman.
The families of the slain elite commandos are dismayed because the Ombudsman's charges against Aquino are supposedly weak.
Last July 14, the Ombudsman ordered the filing of cases of usurpation of authority and graft against Aquino in connection with the Mamasapano operation.
The protesters believe the Ombudsman should have sued Aquino for reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide, which they had previously asked.
The families are also asking Morales and a special panel of prosecutors currently handling the charges to inhibit from the cases.