The arrest of Davao-based journalist Margarita Valle last Sunday which turned out to be a case of mistaken identity puts into a question how intelligent is this so-called intelligence report which is the basis for the actions of government authorities including the country’s chief executive, President Duterte.
Valle, 61, a columnist of online publication Davao Today, was arrested at Laguindingan Airport in Cagayan de Oro,Misamis Oriental by agents of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Western Mindanao, while waiting for her flight to Davao City at about 10:30 a.m. She just came from a training workshop with the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines in Cagayan de Oro City.
She was released about 10 p.m. after being held incommunicado. A report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Col. Tom Tuzon, director of the CIDG in the Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9) admitting that the arrest of Valles was a mistake.