'Delusional' Pamatong behind foiled NAIA bombing, NSC chief calls group 'harmless'

From InterAksyon (Sep 3): 'Delusional' Pamatong behind foiled NAIA bombing, NSC chief calls group 'harmless'

“Delusional” perennial presidential candidate Ely Pamatong’s group was behind the foiled NAIA bombing and National Security Adviser Cesar Garcia called Pamatong’s group “harmless.”

Garcia made the statement Wednesday during a budget hearing chaired by Senator Francis Escudero, who heads the Senate finance committee.

Pamatong’s group, the United States Armed Freedom Fighters of the East (USAFFE), is classified as a “fake guerrilla racket, fake guerrilla organization, dubious anti-communist organization, pseudo-religious organization and the like,” Garcia said, also calling it “harmless” and “dubious.”

The group was foiled in its attempt to explode a car bomb at the NAIA Terminal 3. It also had plans to bomb the Mall of Asia and to strafe the Chinese embassy and the DMCI offices in Makati after it expressed exasperation over the Philippine government’s perceived weak stance against China’s incursion into Philippine territory and the dominance of Chinese-Filipino business. The Mall of Asia is owned by Chinese-Filipino tycoon Henry Sy while DMCI is owned by another Chinese-Filipino tycoon David Consunji.

“Sometimes, these types of organizations driven by delusions, led by delusional individuals are involved in these kinds of activities,” Garcia said in a mixture of English and Tagalog.

Garcia’s assessment of Pamatong’s group runs counter to that of the Department of Justice, which in its Tuesday press conference called the foiled bombing an act of terror.

Newly confirmed Armed Force of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. agreed with Garcia’s assessment. In interviews with Senate reporters, Catapang said the military considered the foiled bombing more a criminal offense rather than a destabilization effort.

“We still believe that this is not a terrorist act because it was done by somebody whom we know is more or less like a prankster who wants to get the attention of the public. But we’re still looking into it,” Catapang said.

Besides, the AFP chief emphasized, even their intelligence reports do not indicate a cause for any alarm as no subsequent similar incidents have been monitored.

‘Labintador lang’

“There’s no destabilization angle. Just imagine, ano lang yun labintador lang tapos nilagyan ng gasolina (it was simply firecrackers with gasoline). Anybody can do that. I think that's not something that we should bother about,” he added. 

Catapang also said there’s no need to raise alert levels due to the foiled bombing.
“Walang nakita (Nothing was monitored) as of our reports,” he said, noting that the Pamatong group’s alleged bomb plot at AFP headquarters, major shopping malls, and other highly-populated places proved to have no basis at all.

“That is the allegation, sabi may threat sa kampo (camp) namin pero negative naman. Negative lahat. Sa (shopping) mall, negative din,” he said.

“We did not want to give them importance because they are just, to us, pranksters,” he said. 

Nevertheless, the three who were arrested for the bomb attempt have to face the consequences for their actions, Catapang said.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/94677/delusional-pamatong-behind-foiled-naia-bombing-nsc-chief-calls-group-harmless