In a meeting with the families of Special Action Force commandos killed in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25, President Aquino was reported to have lost his patience when asked about how he was going to deliver justice to the fallen men.
The Fallen 44 were killed in an operation where they sought to serve an arrest warrant on two terrorists, Marwan and Usman. Subsequent revelations indicated that the men would not have died had there been reinforcements from the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
No order was given for timely help because top leadership feared such would imperil the ongoing peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Curiously, one of the terrorists had been living in MILF “territory” for many years.
Reports also surfaced that 27 of the policemen were shot at close range. A video circulated online showing one of them still moving but was finished off by an unknown gunman.
“Unknown” is the operative word. “Ano’ng gusto nyo, kunan namin ng fingerprints ang lahat ng MILF [What do you want us to do, get the fingerprints of all members of the MILF]?” the President said to the widows whom he felt were needling him about going after those who killed their loved ones, according to a DZMM anchor who spoke with one of the family members.
The Palace denied such an exchange ever took place — but then again, thee denials don’t amount to much given the way everyone around the President has been perverting the facts to protect Mr. Aquino.
That the President could utter these unfortunate words is not difficult to imagine, given his penchant for insensitive demeanor during trying times. Mr. Aquino was photographed smiling while inspecting the bus where the Luneta hostage crisis took place in 2010. In 2013, in the aftermath of typhoon Yolanda, he told a businessman worried about looting: “Buhay ka pa naman diba {Your’e still alive, aren’t you}?”. When the bodies of the slain policemen were flown into Villamor Air Base, he chose to attend a car manufacturer’s event. And in his speeches, he repeatedly talked about himself and his family instead of comforting the grieving.
But just because Mr Aquino does this often does not make it any less wrong. These women lost their husbands when they could have performed their mission and then returned home safely, had not some people played god. They must not be begrudged their clamor for justice. This is just oppressive.
Woe, too, to those planning to capitalize on the grief of the families and use them to further a political agenda. The order of the day is to find out who did the things that led to the deaths that could have been prevented, and make them accountable for these acts. Full stop. Anything beyond this would be opportunistic, hence as oppressive.
These families have already lost their kin and now face a bleak future. That’s tragedy enough. Our leaders should not be so despicable as to make them grieve even more.