The head of the police force of North Cotabato was sacked from his post over the bloody Kidapawan City dispersal operations that left at least three people dead and several others injured, most of them policemen.
Director General Ricardo Marquez, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), had Senior Supt. Alexander Tagum relieved effective Wednesday.
With questions raised over the incident, the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights started yesterday its inquiry into the bloodshed while vice-presidential aspirant Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero called on the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a parallel investigation to prevent a possible whitewash.
“The NBI should be given a free hand in the investigation in order to avoid suspicions of a possible whitewash,” Escudero said in a statement.
The PNP had earlier deployed a fact-finding team to investigate the dispersal operations in Kidapawan City. It is led by Director Isagani Nerez, a lawyer who currently heads the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations-Western Mindanao. Completing the team are Senior Supt. Felix Servita, Senior Supt. Daniel Macatlang, Supt. Danilo Macerin, and Supt. Rainiero de Chavez.
Marquez said relieving commanders is a normal procedure in the PNP, especially pending the result of any investigation.
“This is a matter of procedure when an investigation, after an incident, is commenced,” said Marquez.
Tagum was the ground commander of the police team that cleared the national highway in Kidapawan City which was reportedly blocked by hungry protesting farmers.
He added that the relief order also came after it was confirmed that the lawmen deployed in the area fired their guns. The firing resulted in the death and wounding of some protesters.
“There is already an acknowledgment from the PNP that some personnel deployed in the LEO (Law Enforcement Operation) fired their weapons,” said Marquez.
“We are waiting for the result of the investigation to find out their reasons for using their firearms,” he added.
IMPARTIAL PROBE
But Escudero said the NBI can ensure an impartial and independent investigation.
He pointed out that the PNP has already started its own inquiry into the violent clash carried out by the local police to break a barricade set up by farmers begging for rice and other government aid due to the drought induced by the El Niño phenomenon which has hit various parts of the country.
“The PNP probing an incident involving its men will have no credibility whatsoever. I believe that it is imperative that the NBI assume control of the investigation immediately,” he said.
Escudero also said the protest wouldn’t turn bloody had the police observed maximum tolerance in dealing with protesters and if the government took steps to help the El Niño-stricken farmers.
“One of the greatest tragedies of the Kidapawan City shooting of farmers and agricultural workers is this: Filipino farmers and agricultural workers begging for rice to feed themselves. How can we sleep at night when we have this inhumane situation?” he said.
“We cannot blame these folk for demanding direct assistance of cavans of rice from the government. They need to feed themselves daily in order not to die. Literally death is staring at them, not only hunger. We have to understand their situation that they are literally asking for their next meals,” explained the senator.
GOV’T BLAMED
At the Senate hearing, vice-presidential candidate and Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter S. Cayetano faulted the national government for the shooting and violent dispersal of “hungry and angry.”
Cayetano said this was caused by the failure of the Aquino administration to address the agriculture sector’s concern about the ill effects of the El Niño phenomenon although Congress had set aside funds for the mitigation of the negative effects of the drought. He said that by failing to take immediate action to curb the effects of the dry spell, the national government has aggravated the situation of poor Filipino farmers.
“The farmers have suffered so much but government has failed to give them support. Where is the national government? Cayetano asked.
During the hearing, Cayetano questioned the absence of concerned national officials although they were invited.
But Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Florencio Abad said there is no truth to Cayetano’s allegations, adding that the vice presidential bet should refrain from politicizing the issue.
Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said Cayetano’s allegation is “untrue and unfounded.”
“Since the creation of the Cabinet-level El Niño Task Force, funds and resources were deployed to mitigate the effects of El Niño and assure stable food and water supply,” Coloma said.
As this developed, presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte cursed Cotabato Governor Emmylou Talino Mendoza for criticizing as politically motivated the mayor’s contribution of rice to protesting farmers in Kidapawan City.
On the other hand, LP standard-bearer Mar Roxas was accused of callousness for allegedly insinuating that the barricade set up by protesting farmers “may have been instigated by politicians who wanted something to happen to heighten the issue or raise their ratings.”
Kabataan Partylist Rep. Terry Ridon also called for the filing of criminal, civil and administrative charges against Mendoza, officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala for their role in the bloody dispersal of protesters last April 1. He said their failure to respond to the needs of the farmers hit by the El Niño may also be subjected to formal complaints.
Makabayan senatorial bet Rep. Neri Colmenares slammed Roxas and the Aquino administration for claiming that policemen are the victims of the bloody incident.
For his part, Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) senatorial bet Win Gatchalian assailed the Aquino administration for its “callousness” over the plight of farmers, citing the service fees being imposed on farmers in Mindanao for irrigation services despite the raging El Niño.
Reelectionist Sen. Teofisto “TG” Guingona III said that as a concerned son of Mindanao, he is deeply affected by the violence that marred the protest-rally of his constituents.
“I am deeply affected by the violence that marred the protest-rally of my constituents who demanded food but received bullets instead. As a result of the merciless dispersal of their mass action, a few have died and more than a hundred are still nursing injuries. I am sad that their misery continues to this very day,” Guingona said in a statement.
Guingona said he is confident the Senate hearing would shed light to the real cause behind the incident.
“I am confident that this hearing will bring answers to my questions. Did impoverished farmers receive aid due them since Kidapawan was declared under a state of calamity in January because of climate change? Is it incorrect to say that the protesting farmers were defenseless against heavily armed police forces that opened fire on them? Are the rights of the faithful being trampled upon by the shakedown of Church premises by police authorities?” Guingona pointed out.
“I come not to judge but to be one with Mindanaoans who have the heart to seek justice for the poor. They can count on me to always be at their side in times like these,” he stressed.
‘RESTORATIVE JUSTICE’
Meanwhile, a Marist brother who brokered a “dialogue” between local government officials and the organizers of the farmers’ protests in Kidapawan wants “restorative justice” in dealing with the detention of those individuals arrested on April 1.
Brother Manuel de Leon of the Marist Brothers of the Schools (FMS) said that in dealing with the situation in Kidapawan City, “restorative justice” is needed instead of using the present legal system, which he described as “punitive in nature.”
De Leon, president of the Notre Dame of Kidapawan College (NDKC), said restorative justice is an approach in solving a problem or a crisis situation on three basic concepts: first, focus is on the harm that has been done to people and relationships; second, the obligations and liabilities on the harm that was inflicted; and third, for the community to heal the harm and put things right.
Restorative justice, as he explained, “is making moves outside of the criminal justice system.”
For De Leon, the present legal system is “punitive,” which is a “retributive” measure with harsh, severe, or stiff penalties. (With reports from Mario B. Casayuran, Madel S. Namit, Ben R. Rosario, and Malu Cadelina Manar)