By VERA Files When Malacanang submits to Congress for confirmation its list of Cabinet appointees, Interior and Local Governments Secretary Jesse Robredo, who is under…
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Category: Benigno Aquino III
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President Aquino believed everything that Rico E. Puno, his shooting buddy that he appointed Interior Undersecretary for police matters, advised him during the Aug. 23 hostage crisis.
Puno never set foot in the crisis command headquarters, if ever there was one.
Puno said there was no TV set at the Emerald restaurant which was supposedly Lim’s command center. They were just getting reports of police by cellphone.
The above were just few of the booboos committed by those in charge of the Aug 23 hostage crisis. Here’s ABS-CBN’s report:
‘Series of errors’ uncovered in hostage tragedy
By David Dizon, abs-cbnNEWS.com
A government panel on Friday uncovered a series of errors that could have led to the bloody ending of the August 23 hostage crisis that killed 8 Hong Kong tourists.
A Department of the Interior and Local Government official assigned to supervise the country’s police force noted several lapses in the handling of the hostage crisis including: lack of crowd control, lack of control of the media and lack of equipment for the police team assigned to assault the bus held the remaining 15 hostages.
Aquino owned up responsibility for hostage crisis fiasco
President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III on Friday took responsibility for “everything that has transpired” in the hostage crisis last week.
President Aquino said he actually has direct supervision of the Philippine National Police at the time since he had previously asked Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jess Robredo to concentrate on something else.
Aquino explained that when he offered the DILG portfolio to Robredo, Robredo was asked to address concerns such as coming up with a comprehensive plan on delivering social services to and relocating informal settlers in coordination with the local governments. Aquino, who held the DILG in a concurrent capacity when he assumed office, had the direct control of the PNP.
“When I got him, I did tell him, that at this point in time, we’re trying to consolidate especially with our security forces, I will retain direct supervision on the PNP, until such time that he has addressed other concerns, specifically our promises to the informal sectors of our country,” Aquino told reporters.
Aquino said at the end of the day, he was responsible for everything that happened.
Like the cancellation of the visits to Vietnam (Sept 13 to 14) and Indonesia (Sept. 14 to 15). Coming from him, the cancellation had a grating effect.
Aquino also said that he is pushing with his scheduled visit to the United States scheduled Sept 18 to 28.
“Canceled na yung trips, the first one will be America,” he said. He will be speaking at the United Nations and will be witnessing the signing of the Millenium Challange Corporation’s $434-million grant. Other activities have been lined up for him during his U.S visit.
By making the United States his first foreign visit, Aquino breaks the tradition among Southeast Asian leaders to take his first foreign visit to any of the fellow members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
While China was protesting the draping of the Philippine flag on the coffin Senior Police Inspector Rolando Mendoza, who hostaged a bus-full of tourists from Hongkong last Monday at the Rizal Park which resulted in the death of eight of the visitors, it was also doing its own flag- raising operation.
Foreign news agencies reported last Friday that China “had used a small, manned submarine to plant the national flag deep beneath the South China Sea, where Beijing has tussled with Washington and Southeast Asian nations over territorial disputes.”
What is the Philippines going to do now, being one of the countries that claim some parts of the South China Sea?
Dumadaan sa matinding pagsubok ngayon ang pamahalaang Aquino dahil sa trahedya na nangyari noong Lunes sa Rizal Park kung saan walong turistang galing Hongkong ang namatay sa palpak na operasyun ng pamahalaan sa panghu-hostage ng isang napatalsik na pulis.
Hindi lang ang mga pulis ang lumabas na palpak. Pumalpak rin ang Malacañang at Department of Foreign Affairs sa tawag ni Donald Tsang, chief Executive ng Hong Kong Special Administrative Region na sakop ng higanteng People’s Republic of China.
Hindi pinakausap kay Pangulong Aquino si Tsang nang tumawag ito ng hapon pa lang. Una sabi ang aide ni Aquino na nakatanggap ng tawag ay hindi kilala kung sino si Tsang. Umiba na ang linya ng Malacanang ngayon. Sabi kilala naman daw si Tsang kaya lang hindi raw sila sigurado kung si Tsang nga dahil sa trunkline tumawag at wala naman daw pasabi muna. Kaya itinuro sa Department fo Foreign Affairs.
Akala siguro ni Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, mababawasan ang sisi sa kanya sa paghingi daw ng tawad sa kanya ni Chief Supt. Rodolfo Magtibay na siyang nagsabi na si Lim ang nag-order na arestuhin si SPO2 Gregorio Mendoza, kapatid ng hostage-taker na si dating Senior Police Inspector Rolando Mendoza.
Sinabi ito ni Magtibay sa imbestigasyon ng Senado. Sang-ayon naman ang lahat na maayos ang takbo ng negosasyun sa simula at nagpalaya na nga ng ilang hostages. Nag-iba ang ihip ng hangin ng makita ni Rolando Mendoza na kinakaladkad ang kapatid niya ng mga pulis. Live ito pinapakita sa TV. May TV ang bus.
Gusto ko lang klaruhin. Hindi ko kinukunsinti ang ginawa ni Rolando Mendoza. Malaki ang kasalanan niya sa gulong ito. Ngunit lalong lumaki ang krisis dahil sa kapalpakan ng ating mga opisyal.
Our efforts to get clarification on why Hongkong Chief Executive Donald Tsang was not able to talk with President Aquino during last Monday’s hostage-taking crisis has led us to more confusion.
In his press conference Monday evening, after eight of the 22 Hongkong nationals on a sightseeing visit to the Philippines ended up dead when a dismissed policemen held them hostage for 12 hours, Tsang said “since 4pm” he had been trying to call up Aquino “but all efforts failed.”
The tragedy has resulted in diplomatic fall-outs. The Philippine consulate in Hongkong has been a scene of emotional protests from Hongkong nationals. Philippine Airlines and Manila hotels have reported cancellation of tourists reservations.
Beijing has refused to receive the top-level delegation (Vice President Jejomar Binay, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo, and Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda) being sent by Aquino until such time that investigation on the tragedy is completed.
by Tessa Jamandre VERA Files Despite the criticisms hurled at the media for the way they covered last Monday’s hostage crisis, most of them observed…
Malacañang also said they will be sending a high-level delegation to Hongkong to meet with Tsang, who had demanded a “full account” of last Monday tragedy.
Hongkong newspapers carried Tsang’s statement saying Monday, he had been trying to contact Aquino “since 4pm ..but all efforts failed.” He said the way the Aquino government handled the hostage situation was “regrettable” and “disappointing.”
Told about Tsang’s statement, Aquino said he did not know about Tsang’s call and that nobody told him about it.
Inquiries about the incident revealed that while the hostage situation was going on, Aquino was closely monitoring it, and he was talking with police authorities constantly. He told his staff that he won’t be taking any calls unless it’s extremely important.
Ang nang hostage ay si dating Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza. Ang kanyang kapatid naman na nasa Manila Police Department traffic bureau ay si SPO2 Gregorio Mendoza.
Ang sama kasi ng pagkahuli ng pulis na kuhang-kuha sa TV na pinapanoon naman ni Rolando sa bus. Hapon nang pumunta si Gregorio sa Luneta nang mabalitaan niya sa radio na nag-hostage ang kapatid niya. Noong una, pinayagan pang mga pulis si Gregorio na maka-usap si Rolando . Pinaki-usapan nga niya nga na palawigin ang deadline lampas sa alas-tres ng hapon na kanyang unang binigay na pumayag naman.
Nag-iba ang takbo ng sitwasyun nang inaresto ng mga pulis si Gregorio at sinabing kakasuhan daw ng pakikipagsabwatan kay Rolando. Siyempre natakot si Gregorio lalo pa nang dinadaan daw siya sa likuran ng presinto. Sa takot niya, tumakbo siya sa media na nagku-cover.
Nang pinapanood ko ang pag-aresto kay Gregorio, naala-ala ko ang eksena ng paghablot ng mga kamag-anak ng asawa ni Ted Failon habang sila ay nagbabantay sa kanilang naghiningalong kapatid sa hospital.