Malaysian peacekeepers reaffirm nation’s commitment to peace

New Straits Times (Mar 11): Malaysian peacekeepers reaffirm nation’s commitment to peace 
 

KUALA LUMPUR: Yet another of Malaysia’s international monitoring teams begins its task in Mindanao on Friday, reaffirming the country’s commitment to the peace process between the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The Malaysian International Monitoring Team - Mindanao 10 (IMT–M10) takes over from IMT-M9 which had served since March 14, 2014, and assigned for one year to four areas, Cotabato City, Iligan City, Zamboanga and General Santos City.

IMT–M10 comprises 16 officers and personnel from the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF), Royal Malaysian Police, Defence Ministry and Foreign Ministry, led by Maj Gen Datuk Sheikh Mokhsin Sheikh Hassan.

For the record, 240 officers and personnel from the security forces and defence ministry (not including IMT-M10) had participated in the peacekeeping mission since Sept 9, 2004.

Other countries in the IMT are Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Qatar and some nations of the European Union.

Chief of Defence Forces Gen Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin said recently the IMT–M10 would be the last of the Malaysian teams.

He said that once the peace agreement was signed, the IMT would end its mission and a decommissioning committee was likely to be set up to ensure that the ceasefire stayed as agreed.

The Mindanao conflict had raged on for three decades before Malaysia endeavoured and succeeded in bringing both sides to the negotiation table and a ceasefire.

On Jan 25 this year, 44 Philippines National Police-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) and eight members of the MILF were killed in a clash, in what is seen as an attempt to derail the peace process.

International Studies expert Prof Datuk Dr Mohamad Abu Bakar said the Malaysian team stood to gain much experience with its presence in Mindanao for the sake of solidarity as a member of ASEAN and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

“Our team is aware of and sensitive to what is happening, including not wanting to be blamed for interfering in the domestic affairs of another country.

“As such, every action in upholding the responsibility is always neutral and logical,” he told Bernama. --Bernama

 http://www.nst.com.my/node/75748

Military helps in burial of slain BIFF members

From the Philippine Star (Mar 10): Military helps in burial of slain BIFF members  
           
The military on Tuesday helped provide a decent burial for four bandits killed by Marines in an encounter in Mamasapano town last Sunday, despite their having killed 10 police commandos in an attack on January 25.

The slain members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), Jack Norodin, Kaharudin Pendatu, Tahir Sapal and Murad Duwang, all wore something they took from members of the police’s Special Action Force they had killed after a raid at Inog-og area in west of Mamasapano, where the policemen had earlier gunned down Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, most known as Marwan.

Marwan was touted as the Osama bin Laden of Southeast Asia.

At least 44 policemen, 18 members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and five civilians were killed in the January 25 encounters in three barangays in Mamasapano.

The BIFF's central leadership, which ambushed a group of SAF men retreating from the scene, earlier bragged about killing 10 policemen, whose uniforms and firearms bandits took with them as they fled after the shootout.

Pendatu, Norodin, Sapal and Duwang all hailed from Mamasapano, where Marwan had stayed and trained some 300 Maranaw, Tausog, Maguindanaon and Yakan recruits in handling and fabrication of explosives for more than three years.

Army officials said the four bandits were felled by snipers of the 26th and 36th Marine Companies, which broke through the BIFF’s defense cordon encircling the group’s major enclave at Barangay Dasikil in southwest of Mamasapano and hoisted the Philippine flag at its center five hours after the operation was launched.

The remains of the four bandits were laid to rest with the help of Mayor Zamzamin Ampatuan of Rajah Buayan, also in the second district of Maguindanao, and a non-government organization engaged in peace-building projects involving members of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division and local Muslim communities.

“I have to do a heavy humanitarian role. I was asked to help,” Ampatuan, who is involved in extensive missionary and peace-building programs in his town, said.

The cadavers of the four bandits were even given final cleansing rites, bathed and wrapped in white linen, by Army clerics, among them the command imam of the 6th Infantry Division, Captain Mujib Ladjabuan, a Tausog.

Norodin and Pendatu were followers of the radical jihadist Imam Mohammad Tambako, a pioneer leader of the BIFF, but recently renamed his group Justice Islamic Movement, which is more known to mayors in Maguindanao as Saifullah, which some of them interpreted as “sword of God.”

It was in the BIFF enclave in Barangay Dasikil, now guarded by Marines, where Tambako and his men had assembled improvised roadside bombs and explosives they used in recent attacks in the adjoining Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat and North Cotabato provinces.

Among the deadly bombings the BIFF perpetrated in recent months were at least three successive attacks late last year in North Cotabato’s Kabacan, Pikit and Mlang towns, which left a total of eight people dead and injured about a hundred others.

Sapal and Duwang were known as errands of the four Indonesians tagging along with the elusive ethnic Maguindanaon bomb-maker Abdulbasit Usman, who was wounded during the January 25 raid by members of SAF operatives at Inog-og that resulted to the death of Marwan.

Ladjabuan, who is also caretaker of the 6th ID’s mosque near the Maguindanao Airport in Datu Odin Sinsuat town, said their commander, Major Gen. Edmundo Pangilinan, has a standing order to all units under him to facilitate decent burials for every gunman neutralized in the government’s on-going law enforcement operation against the BIFF.
“The guidance is for us to find way to turn over their remains to their families after having been given traditional Islamic prayer rites,” Ladjabuan said.

Relatives that claimed the cadavers of the four BIFF members the Marines had killed had asked not to be photographed along with their remains.

Soldiers had recovered from the BIFF camp in Barangay Dasikil materials for fabrication of improvised explosives, addresses of public terminals the group was to bomb, ammunition for assorted rifles, firearms and live shoulder-fire 40-millimeter grenade projectiles.

Barangay officials said more than 30 BIFF bandits have been killed in encounters with pursuing soldiers since last March 1, but most of them were carried away by their companions as they escaped deep into the 220,00-hectare Liguasan Delta at the tri-boundary of Maguindanao, North Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat.

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/03/10/1432073/military-helps-burial-slain-biff-members

Chinese Coast Guard vessels chase Philippine Navy

From Ang Malaya (Mar 10): Chinese Coast Guard vessels chase Philippine Navy

Chinese Coast Guard once again chased a Philippine vessel with government troops on a resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal, ABS-CBN’s TV Patrol says in an exclusive report. Two Chinese vessels blew their horns and sounded their sirens calling on the Filipino troops, however, they did not block the Philippine vessel.

The mission turned out to be successful. Government forces on the resupply mission found the deployed troops in Ayungin Shoal based at BRP Sierra Madre on high spirits.

China has continued presence in West Philippine Sea and is conducting massive reclamation activities in number of disputed reefs.

Department of National Defense spokesman Peter Galvez said China’a reclamation activities “will continue to cause the occurrence of miscalculation or accidents. It becomes higher because of their insistence and their continuous aggressive stance in the region. This is a very serious concern.”

http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/03/10/9237-chinese-coast-guard-vessels-chase-philippine-navy

Groups to probe Talaingod`militarization

From the Mindanao Times (Mar 10): Groups to probe Talaingod`militarization

SEVERAL groups have visited the Manobo communities in Talaingod, Davao del Norte to check on the reported militarization of these communities.

 

Rius Valle, head of the Children Rehabilitation Center, said the humanitarian mission will check on whether the deployment of more troops to the area has created an impact on the communities.

 

Valle said the groups will also provide medical assistance, psycosocial intervention for children and adult, and investigate cases of reported human rights abuses on civilians.

 

“This mission is also a way of expressing our solidarity with the Manobo and the rest of the peasant and lumad communities that have been target of military operations,” said Valle as these groups are set to return from the area on Thursday.

 

He said that based on the initial documentation, “things are clear that the military are targeting the civilians whom they maliciously and falsely tagged as rebels.”

 

http://mindanaotimes.net/groups-to-probe-talaingodmilitarization/

Rebel slain in operation

From the Mindanao Times (Mar 10): Rebel slain in operation

A MEMBER of the New People’s Army was killed when soldiers from the 10^th Scout Ranger Battalion were conducting a pursuit operation after a group that burned equipment in Sitio Kipolot, Brgy. Palacapao, Quezon, Bukidnon Sunday.

The military report said soldiers were pursuing the rebels which led to a 30-minute gunbattle that resulted in the death of the rebel.

Col Jess Alvarez, commander of 403rd Brigade based in Malaybalay, Bukidnon, said the soldiers were verifying the report about the burning of the equipment when the chanced upon the armed group.

The military also seized two M16 rifle, an AK 47, a hand-held radio and ammunition.

Alvarez said government agencies were still looking for the family of the dead rebel which he did not identify.

http://mindanaotimes.net/rebel-slain-in-operation/

Cardinal Quevedo defends MILF: 'They're not terrorists'

From Rappler (Mar 10): Cardinal Quevedo defends MILF: 'They're not terrorists'

'The bottom line of the Mamasapano tragedy is mistrust – on both sides of the conflict,' Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo says

RAISED IN MINDANAO. Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo speaks about from experience about the Mindanao conflict. File photo courtesy of Fabio Frustaci/EPA

 

Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo defended the Muslim group engaged in peace talks with the Philippine government, and urged “both sides” of the conflict in the southern Philippines to trust each other.

 

In a statement publicized on Monday, March 9, Quevedo also rejected “biases and prejudices” toward Muslims, including the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which signed a peace agreement with the Philippine government.

 

Quevedo pointed out that he has “witnessed a harmonious dialogue of life” among his students in a Catholic university in Mindanao.

 

The cardinal, who has served for more than 3 decades as a priest in Mindanao, wrote: “Many of our soldiers and high-ranking officers studied in our Catholic schools. So, too, did members and leaders of the MILF. They are not terrorists. Terrorists have in fact broken away from them. The MILF only aspires and struggles politically for a place under the sun in freedom and dignity.”

Quevedo, who also grew up in Mindanao, issued this statement as a controversial police operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, “resurrected” age-old biases and prejudices against Muslims.

Think tank: MILF cut terror links

The clash in Mamasapano killed 44 members of an elite police force, 18 Muslim rebels, and at least 3 civilians. (READ: SAF gave Purisima full Mamasapano briefing)

The Mamasapano bloodbath also prompted congressmen to stall the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), a landmark in the peace process to end a 4-decade-old Muslim secessionist movement in Mindanao. The BBL aims to create an autonomous Muslim region more powerful than the one in place. (READ: Bishops, peace advocates: Hear Mindanao, pass BBL)

Quevedo said: “We hear ourselves say, we cannot trust the Moros, we cannot trust the MILF. We cannot trust them to lay down their arms, we cannot trust them with the money they need for development, we cannot trust them to go after terrorists once they have their own government, we cannot trust them to practice democracy, we cannot trust them to govern well. We simply cannot trust them.”

He added, “The bottom line of the Mamasapano tragedy is mistrust – on both sides of the conflict.”

Quevedo's statement came as an Indonesia-based think tank, the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), released a report that said the MILF as a group has cut its ties with terrorists. Certain members of the MILF have given refuge to terrorists, however, IPAC reported. (Watch more in the video below)

[Video report: Rappler Talk: The Marwan manhunt and its impact on the peace process  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMnq0mRRAtM]

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, on the other hand, earlier implied that the MILF is a terrorist group. (READ: War and chicken hawks)

'Don't lump Moro armed groups'

In his statement, Quevedo explained that biases and prejudices have produced “totally wrong” convictions.

One of these is that “we lump all Moro armed groups” together “as lawless groups that advocate secession and independence.” These groups include the MILF, the Moro National Liberation Front, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, the Abu Sayyaf Group, and private armed groups.

He listed other “totally wrong” conclusions:

• “We believe that the MILF claims the whole of Mindanao
• “We conclude that the Bangsamoro government will have agencies that will be totally independent of their national counterparts
• “We assert that the MILF will become the police force of the Bangsamoro
• “We dismiss as sham the conversion of MILF from a secessionist movement into a principled partner for peace. We persist in calling them 'secessionists'
• “We threaten to do away with provisions that protect a proposed fledgling Bangsamoro government from the negativities of warlordism and clan domination. Yet it is so easy to ask our own peace negotiators why it is necessary for the Bangsamoro to be 'MILf-led' in the short term
• “We mistrust the MILF’s determination to govern well and thus to reverse Bangsamoro political history”

Quevedo said that, on the contrary, the following “are at the heart and soul” of the BBL:

• "Bangsamoro self-determination will be exercised within a limited territory under the sovereignty of the Philippines. National sovereignty and territorial integrity will be preserved
• “The overall principle that governs the BBL is the Catholic moral and social principle of subsidiarity, a principle already enshrined in our own Constitution. The principle requires the intervention of the national government and its various entities when the common good of all requires it. Therefore, no entity of the Bangsamoro government, such as a Bangsamoro auditing department or police force, is absolutely independent of their national counterparts”

The cardinal also pushed for refining the BBL “so that it will hew closely to our Constitution.”

 

“But let there be consensus among constitutional luminaries on what is constitutional and what is not constitutional among the provisions of the BBL. Let us make sure that we do not 'improve and strengthen' the BBL such that the idea of self-determination that is imbedded in various provisions of the BBL becomes once more an illusion, a desire begging despairingly to be realized,” he said.

 

In an earlier interview with MindaNews, Quevedo also said the dream of Muslims “for self-determination in their own territory” is “very valid.” A closer look at history will prove this, the cardinal said.

 

http://www.rappler.com/nation/86335-cardinal-quevedo-milf-terrorists-bbl

Filipino politician claims US behind offensives in south

From Anadolu Agency (Mar 9): Filipino politician claims US behind offensives in south

Congressman claims US wants to gain foothold in area thought to contain oil and mineral reserves valued over $1 trillion.

A Filipino congressman has accused the U.S. government of orchestrating recent offensives by the Philippines army in the country’s Muslim south, saying it aims to gain a foothold in an area thought to contain oil and mineral reserves valued over $1 trillion.

Rep. Terry Ridon of the partylist Kabataan outlined his claim in the country’s House of Representatives on Monday, claiming incidents such as the Jan. 25 Mamasapano operation -- which led to the deaths of 44 police commandos -- were part of a U.S. "multi-level strategy" to gain a foothold on the Liguasan Marsh in Central Mindanao.

"Both the U.S. government and the [President Benigno] Aquino administration make it appear that the botched Mamasapano operation and even the ongoing ‘all-out offensive’ in Central Mindanao are part of counterterrorism efforts," he said. 

On Monday, military spokesman Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc said that 73 rebels and a suspected foreign militant had been killed in the three-week offensive. Outside of the 44 police commandos, six soldiers have been killed and a further 29 others wounded.

Ridon claimed Monday that the entire offensive had one single goal -- "to drive out the Moro people from an area containing vast mineral reserves and pave the way for foreign companies to exploit said resources."

Ridon's allegation echoes similar accusations from Moro human rights group Kawagib and Suara Bangsamoro, both of whom have previously claimed that U.S. military presence in Central Mindanao is directly connected to the region’s oil and mineral reserves. 

As early as 2008, there have been reports of U.S. oil engineers exploring the 220,000-hectare Liguasan Marsh -- the country’s largest wetland -- estimating that natural gas and mineral reserves in the area can fetch somewhere between $600 billion to $1 trillion.

The marsh spans the provinces of Maguindanao and North Cotabato, where military forces are currently conducting an "all-out offensive" against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, a breakaway faction of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) -- who have signed a peace treaty with the government, and newly formed group, the Justice for Islamic Movement.

Ridon on Monday blasted the "so-called counterterrorism efforts" supported by the U.S. military as nothing more than an excuse for Americans to gain foothold in Central Mindanao.

"It’s a multi-level strategy orchestrated by none other than the U.S. government," he said. "Let us connect the dots:

"First, they deployed the 600-strong Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines for ground operations and initial surveillance. Then they launch so-called counterterrorism offensives, one of which is the Mamasapano operation, to justify their presence in Central Mindanao. Then, the Philippine government, for its part, engaged in a large-scale offensive to drive out Moro communities near Liguasan.

"It will come as no surprise if U.S. companies start flying into Central Mindanao shortly after for oil and mineral explorations," claimed the young legislator.

He claimed that the army's all-out offensive is one of the culminating activities for the plan to take over Liguasan.

"And its real goal is not to capture Basit Usman but to drive away the Moro people from their ancestral lands and pave the way for commercial exploration of the mineral-rich wetland." 

Filipino bomb-maker Basit Usman was reportedly wounded in the Jan. 25 Mamasapano operation that killed one of Southeast Asia’s most wanted militants, Malaysian Zulkifli bin Hir -- alias Marwan.

The offensive has already displaced almost 100,000 civilians in Maguindanao and North Cotabato.  

"The U.S. government, with the full support and obedience of the Aquino administration, is toying with the lives of the people of Mindanao -- all to pursue its great economic interest in Liguasan. This strategy is not new for the world superpower, for the same tactics were employed in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan," Ridon claimed.

He called on each and every Filipino to condemn the "systematic siege" of Central Mindanao in "the highest terms."

http://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/475995--filipino-politician-claims-us-behind-offensives-in-south

Photo: Bodies of slain BIFF rebels claimed by relatives

From GMA News (Mar 9): Photo: Bodies of slain BIFF rebels claimed by relatives



Radjah Buayan Mayor Samsamin Ampatuan (center) on Monday, March 9, helps the relatives of the four Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) slain during Saturday and Sunday clashes with the military in Maguindanao. The alleged relatives have surfaced to claim the remains of the rebels at the 6th Infantry Division headquarters in Camp Siongco Awang. Ampatuan points at the photos of the slain rebels to the relatives to identify their kin. Mark Navales

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/photo/106505/bodies-of-slain-biff-rebels-claimed-by-relatives

P1.2-B chopper deal ‘fixed’

From the Manila Times (Mar 10): P1.2-B chopper deal ‘fixed’
 

THE contract for the procurement of 21 refurbished UH-1 or Huey helicopters to the tune of P1.2 billion was “tailor-fitted” for a “favored” bidder who, after three failed bid attempts, eventually managed to bag the deal through negotiation with officials of the Department of National Defense (DND), documents showed on Monday.

Documents obtained by The Manila Times showed that as early as June 2012, the DND had requested the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) to allow it to enter into “emergency procurement” for various aircraft, including the 21 Huey helicopters.

But in a letter to Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin dated Sept. 28, 2012, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, who chairs the GPPB, informed the DND that their request was denied, saying the agency should make the acquisition through competitive biddings.

According to The Times source who provided voluminous documents that are related to the “onerous” and “disadvantageous” aircraft procurement, the DND then conducted three successive biddings, which all failed.

“The project was designed for negotiated procurement from the beginning. DND had been negotiating with Rice Aircraft Services Inc. (RASI) from the start. The Terms of Reference was prepared specially for Rice as evidenced by inclusion of the required Structural Life Extension Program (SLEP) as stated on pages 27 and 32 of the TOR. On both pages, you will see that there was a requirement that the helicopters ‘must have undergone a SLEP which has been successful and has a verifiable history, with complete documentation from an authorized repair facility,’” the source pointed out.

The Times also obtained a copy of the TOR.

Records showed that each aircraft cost around P54 million, as indicated in various “request[s] for payment” addressed to Susan Mariano, International Trade Department head of the Land Bank of the Philippines. The requests were made by Col. Glenn Cruz of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Quarter Master Service.

RASI and its Canadian partner Eagle Copters Ltd were awarded the P1.2-billion contract in December 2013. RASI participated in the three biddings required by the GPPB. In the end, it won the contract.

“RASI is the only one that can comply with this requirement because UH 1D was the only one that underwent this program because of its old age. This program is not necessary. Other models operate perfectly without SLEP. SLEP is [required] merely to avoid corrosion. This corrosion problem should not be a problem because our PAF [Philippine Air Force] has credible maintenance facility and personnel,” The Times source explained.

In his letter to Gazmin, the DBM chief repeatedly referred to the 21 refurbished choppers as “UH-1H” or Hueys, far from actual deliveries of the older and “obsolete” UH-1D model.

In the same letter with accompanying resolution by the GPPB, it was stated that some of the helicopters should be “mission-capable”.

All eight aircraft (not nine as previously reported) that have been delivered to the PAF hangar had “compatibility” and safety issues.

The UH-1D is older than the UH-1H. The UN-1D’s manufacturer, Dornier, has long folded up and no spare parts are being manufactured specifically for the UH-1D.

In the absence of spare parts, the supplier allegedly fitted Bell spare parts which were specifically designed for the UH-1H, thus there is always an issue of safety, The Times source said.

In an undated letter signed by Robert A. Rice, president of RASI, to Defense Undersecretary for Finance, Munitions and Materiel Fernando Manalo, chairman of the Special Bids and Awards Committee 1 and of the Negotiating Committee, the supplier admitted that the parts required by the DND in the TOR are already “obsolete and out of date.”

Rice said “RASI has made the necessary additions to incorporate all eligible and OEM approved part numbers. These additions are the equivalent, if not superior, to the part numbers that were previously listed in the TOR.”

“RASI’s objective is to deliver 21 UH-1 helicopters with the ‘latest and greatest’ components that will prove to be beneficial to the Philippine Air Force,” his letter to Manalo read.

The source, who was privy to the questionable chopper deal, said the joint venture of RASI and Eagle Copters Ltd defrauded the government by submitting the Statement of Compliance during the negotiation, stating that they will comply with all requirements for the procurement of the 21 refurbished UH-1H.

“This act deprived the government the opportunity to negotiate the project with a qualified supplier who can deliver superior quality of Bell UH-1H instead of UH-1D… The Joint Venture companies also deprived the PAF the chance to acquire better helicopters that are necessary to carry on with its missions and enhanced its capability as part of the AFP Modernization Program,” the source added.

In Malacañang, Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said they have inquired with the DND about the chopper “fiasco” and was promised that the department is “keenly looking” at it, quoting DND Public Information Office chief, Peter Paul Galvez.

But The Manila Times source maintained that the DND should stop the ongoing acceptance of three of the aircraft “before it’s too late and [before the supplier gets] paid.”

Senate probe

The P1.2-billion helicopter deal should be investigated by the Senate, Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito said.

Estrada, a member of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security, was referring to the report published by The Times on Monday about the defective helicopters.

“This [deal] means that we spent P1.2 billion for choppers that can’t be used because the model is already obsolete,” Ejercito said in an interview.

If there were “errors” in the P1.2-billion contract, the defense department is mandated to terminate the contract, a department official said also on Monday.

“Well, the supplier must comply with what is mandated by the contract, we are also mandated to terminate the contract if we found there are [errors]. We are doing what we are supposed to do to see to it that no delivery is accepted unless it complies with what is stated,” Defense Undersecretary Manalo said in a news briefing.

While pointing out that DND officials did not violate any regulation in the procurement law in the acquisition of the helicopters, Manalo added, “If there is an agency that will run after us, then I will accept my fate.”

He said the procurement of 21 helicopters is in the implementation stage and 21 helicopters have been delivered.

But Manalo also explained that delivery is different from acceptance.

“The helicopters were delivered and since [they are of the] knockdown [kind], it’s part of the contract [that we make] the supplier assemble the helicopters and that is not [acceptance]. The interpretation is if [they are] not accepted [they cannot be paid for] as if [they have not been] delivered,” he said.

In the same briefing, Defense Assistance Secretary for Acquisitions Installations and Logistics Patrick Velez also admitted that the contract was not for UH-1D, but for UH-1 and officials deliberately did this to entice more bidders.

Manalo said payment for the helicopters will only be made upon delivery and acceptance of the aircraft.

He added that based on his personal assessment, the supplier must be able to deliver everything not later than April 15, 2015.

“Otherwise, we have reasons to terminate the contract, in addition to that, the supplier must pay maximum liquidated damage amounting to P120 million. The aircraft must be delivered and accepted and they still have to pay liquidated damage,” Manalo said.

Liquidated damage, he also explained, is the damage paid by the supplier for delayed delivery.

http://www.manilatimes.net/p1-2-b-chopper-deal-fixed/168301/

Return Malampaya funds, military told

From the Business World (Mar 9): Return Malampaya funds, military told

THE PHILIPPINES’ audit body has told the country’s armed forces to return the money it got from the Malampaya funds, saying the allocation “may not be valid.”

Funds from Malampaya Deepwater Gas-to-Power project -- which represent royalties paid to the government -- can only be used to bankroll energy projects, the Commission on Audit (CoA) said in a report.

 

As a result, the commission recommended that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) “remit the funds sourced from Malampaya to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) to enable the latter to revert the same to the Malampaya Funds.”

Notice of cash allowances from the Malampaya funds amounting to P61.19 million was transferred from the AFP Modernization Act Trust Fund (AFPMATF) Cash -- National Treasury to the AFPMATF Combo Account to cover the implementation of six Philippine Navy projects in 2013, according to the CoA report.

 

Funds were transferred despite a November 2013 Supreme Court decision that declared the use of Malampaya funds unconstitutional for purposes other than to finance energy resource development and exploitation programs and projects.

According to the report, the AFP commented that the Defense secretary had sent a position paper dated March 7, 2014 to the President regarding the restrictions imposed by the Supreme Court on the use of the Malampaya funds. The paper “presented the argumentation that the modernization projects should be considered as part of the Security Projects for Malampaya Energy Exploration and Development.”

Cash deposits from the Malampaya funds that were transferred in December 2013 remains “unutilized while waiting for the results of the Position Paper of the Department of National Defense being forwarded to the President,” the AFP said.

 

Coordination has already been under way between the AFP Resource Management Office and the Defense Acquisition Office “regarding deposits of the amount to the BTr to enable subsequent reversion to the Malampaya funds,” the AFP said.

 

http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Nation&title=return-malampaya-funds-military-told&id=104043

8th FAB leads beach clean-up

From the Sun Star-Zamboanga (Mar 9): 8th FAB leads beach clean-up

ARMED with brooms and other cleaning tools, the Philippine Army's 8th Field Artillery Battalion (FAB) spearheaded a clean-up drive geared toward keeping the Fuego-Fuego Beach spick and span for picnickers.

The Fuego-Fuego Beach, located in the village of Tabiawan, Isabela City, is among the favorite picnic grounds in Basilan province.

Captain Christian Agonos said Monday that Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Cabansay, the commanding officer of the 8th FAB, spearheaded the clean-up drive, which was held Sunday.

The 8th FAB, which is under the Army Artillery Regiment, is based in the village of Busay, Isabela City, the capital of Basilan province.

"The purpose of the activity is to preserve and maintain the beauty and cleanliness of the Fuego-Fuego Beach and to show and set example to the constituents in the area on how to properly care and maintain the cleanliness of our surroundings," Cabansay said.

Agonos said that personnel of Basilan Provincial Police Office, 54th Special Action Force (SAF), Land Bank of the Philippines-Isabela City Branch, Tabiawan village officials and Isabela City Elementary Pilot School teachers joined the 8th FAB troops in the clean-up drive.

Agonos said the clean-up culminated with a "boodle fight" meal among those who joined the clean-up drive.

Boodle fight is a military style of eating where long tables are prepared and food are on top of the banana leaves. Viands and rice ready to eat using bare hands while jugs of water are prepared on the side to wash hands before the "eating combat."

With the signal to start the boodle fight, everyone aims for his and her position.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/zamboanga/local-news/2015/03/09/8th-fab-leads-beach-clean-396503

NPA leader apologizes to Davao City Mayor Duterte after rebels ambush cops

From InterAksyon (Mar 10): NPA leader apologizes to Davao City Mayor Duterte after rebels ambush cops



The New People's Army (NPA) apologized to Mayor Rodrigo Duterte for the ambush incident that wounded two police officers and one civilian from Marilog Police Station on Sunday morning in Sitio New Calinan, Barangay Baganihan, Marilog District, Davao City.

The incident, the first to happen in Davao City the past years, disappointed the mayor because the NPAs breached a "gentlemen's agreement" that police must not be targets of their operations because the PNP perform different functions such as responding for assistance on theft and robbery, homicide and other crime situations.

Duterte, who convened a command conference on Sunday night, called up Kumander Bob to ask why it happened when they have a standing agreement not to hit the police of the city. Kumander Bob is a political officer of one of the NPA fronts operating in the region.

"We have an agreement, that is why the police are (safe) in going and out of the hinterlands," Duterte stressed. The mayor said the police do not go to the hinterlands to fight unlike the army.

Duterte put on loud speaker his call to Kumander Bob for the police and army to hear the conversation. Kumander Bob apologized to the mayor and recognized the mistake.

Kumander Bob explained to the mayor that one of the rebels, who fell asleep, accidentally released the detonator when he was awakened by noises when the police passed by.

The incident wounded SPO2 Rodger Sevillano and PO1 Marlon Coprada. The civilian was identified as Noel Ajao. All victims were brought to the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC). The police team was on their way to respond to a traffic incident.

Kumander Bob assured the mayor it will be corrected so that no similar incident will happen again.

Duterte said it is up to the NPA to handle their men. “Ila na ang (It is their) internal discipline,” he said.

Duterte pointed out that it was enough for him that the NPA admitted lapses. “At least it was an admirable thing that they accepted responsibility. That itself is fine with me,” he said.

In a police report, the same NPA group was responsible for the burning of two delivery trucks at the vicinity of Sitio Kipulot in Barangay Palakapao, Quezon, Bukidnon.

It was also learned the NPAs lobbed a hand grenade into the police officers. Sketchy reports said improvised bombs were also planted along the Marilog Highway.

Police suspected it is the same group that ambushed police authorities in Bukidnon while on the way to respond to the burning of the delivery truck.

The army troops from the 84th Infantry Battalion pursuing the armed group.

Meanwhile, Duterte already visited the wounded police officers and offered to pay their hospital bills and other medical expenses.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/106589/rebels-ambush-cops-npa-leader-apologizes-to-davao-city-mayor-duterte

MILF: Cardinal Quevedo grieves for Filipinos who perished in Mamasapano, calls for peace

Posted to the MILF Website (Mar 10): Cardinal Quevedo grieves for Filipinos who perished in Mamasapano, calls for peace



While grieving for the Fallen 44 members of the PNP- Special Action Force, 18 combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and 5 civilians who perished in the Mamasapano incident last January 25, Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo, O.M.I., in an open letter dated March 8, called for peace and urged Christians for rationality rather than emotionalism, justice not selective, openness and fairness rather than bias and prejudice.

“For in the wake of Mamasapano our age-old Christian biases and prejudices against Moros have quickly and most sadly resurrected. Biases and prejudices have colored and clouded our judgment”, Cardinal Quevedo said in his letter.

“We hear ourselves say, we cannot trust the Moros. We cannot trust the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front). We cannot trust them to lay down their arms, we cannot trust them with the money they need for development, we cannot trust them to go after terrorists once they have their own government, we cannot trust them to practice democracy we cannot trust them to govern well. We simply cannot trust them.

The bottomline of the Mamasapano tragedy is mistrust—on both sides of the conflict.

It is sheer human tragedy that such sentiments come from the dark side of our hearts. And as a Christian religious leader, I grieve also for this eclipse of the Christian heart. From an anguished heart I ask the Lord to forgive us”, he further said.

In the same letter, he enumerated the biases and prejudices that brought Christians to convictions and conclusions that are totally wrong:

•We lump all Moro armed groups together (MILF, MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front), BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters), Abu Sayaff group, private armed groups) as lawless groups that advocate secession and independence ;

•We believe that the MILF claims the whole of Mindanao;

•We conclude that the Bangsamoro government will have agencies that will be totally independent of their national counterparts;

•We assert that the MILF will become the police force of the Bangsamoro;

•We dismiss as sham the conversion of MILF from a secessionist movement into a principled partner for peace. We persist in calling them “secessionists.”

•We threaten to do away with provisions that protect a proposed fledgling Bangsamoro government from the negativities of warlordism and clan domination. Yet it is so easy to ask our own peace negotiators why it is necessary for the Bangsamoro to be “MILF-led” in the short term.

•We mistrust the MILF’s determination to govern well and thus to reverse Bangsamoro political history.

On the contrary, my brothers and sisters in Christ, the following are at the heart and soul of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL):

•Bangsamoro self-determination will be exercised within a limited territory under the sovereignty of the Philippines. National sovereignty and territorial integrity will be preserved;

•The over-all principle that governs the BBL is the Catholic moral and social principle of subsidiarity, a principle already enshrined in our own Constitution. The principle requires the intervention of the national government and its various entities when the common good of all requires it. Therefore, no entity of the Bangsamoro government, such as a Bangsamoro auditing department or police force, is absolutely independent of their national counterparts.

“Self-determination has been the cry of the Bangsamoro for centuries. They struggled to preserve it against the Spaniards and the Americans. They insisted on it in the face of our government’s efforts to neutralize and domesticate it by democratic processes and the lure of economic development”, Cardinal Quevedo said.

“Rightfully, we are outraged by the manner by which our valiant SAF forces were killed. But in the past 100 years the Bangsamoro have seen hundreds of their own people, including women and children, massacred in mountains and mosques. And we did not open our eyes and ears to see and hear their plaintive cries for justice.

The lesson of history is not one we can sweep under the rug – the fundamental aspiration of a “nation” for self-determination does not die. It will seem to fade away with the passing of old leaders but if unrealized the drive for self-determination will rise with the radicalization of younger generations”.

Cardinal Quevedo refutes those that call the MILF as terrorist saying that the terrorists broke away from the MILF. The MILF only aspires and struggles politically for a place under the sun in freedom and dignity. The BBL was negotiated painstakingly with stops and detours for at least five years. It is not an agreement that was hurriedly done. It fulfills the Bangsamoro aspiration for self-determination. It preserves our fundamental principles of national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

On the unconstitutionality of some provisions of BBL as claimed by critics iof the proposed law, Cardinal Quevedo said that let there be consensus among constitutional luminaries on what is constitutional and what is not constitutional among the provisions of the BBL. Let us make sure that we do not “improve and strengthen” the BBL such that the idea of self-determination that is imbedded in various provisions of the BBL becomes once more an illusion, a desire begging despairingly to be realized.

“I am for peace, the peace that God grants to people of good will. I am for the peace that God gives through the collaborative work of men and women who work conscientiously for the good of the whole country. By focusing on the good of a Bangsamoro minority in the “peripheries” who have suffered social injustices for centuries, they are working for the common good of all Filipinos. They are healing historic wounds that have caused great suffering to all Filipinos”, the cardinal said.

“And so must I grieve for our courageous SAF troops who have lost their lives. I must also grieve for all the other Filipinos who perished in Mamasapano. I grieve and pray for the families they left behind, their inconsolable widows and children, for their uncertain future. For their sake I seek justice and accountability”, the influential cardinal said.

He ended his letter by saying, “It is the Spirit of God that gives hope and infuses love and harmony among peoples of different faiths and cultures. With God’s Spirit we can soar over tragedies, we can restore trust for one another, we can strive together for harmony and peace. Ultimately it is in the enlightened heart where love and peace begin”.

http://www.luwaran.com/index.php/welcome/item/770-cardinal-quevedo-grieves-for-filipinos-who-perished-in-mamasapano-calls-for-peace

MILF: GPH Peace panel chair clarifies two misconceptions in BBL provisions

Posted to the MILF Website (Mar 10): GPH Peace panel chair clarifies two misconceptions in BBL provisions



Prof. Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, Chief negotiator of the Government of the Philippines (GPH) clarified on Thursday, March 5 two misconceptions in the provisions of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) that she described as “top two trending lies.

Those lies, she said, were that the proposed Bangsamoro autonomous region would have its own police force and army, and that the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) would receive a P75-billion fund under the BBL.

Prof. Ferrer said that under Article XI Section 2 of the draft BBL, a Bangsamoro police force would be established for “law enforcement and maintenance of peace and order in the Bangsamoro.

It is clear in the provision that the Bangsamoro police “will be part of the Philippine National Police,” she said.

She also cited Article XIV Section 2 of the proposed BBL which states that the central government would provide for a special development fund to the Bangsamoro “for rehabilitation and development purposes upon ratification” of the draft law, Ferrer said.

The special development fund amounts to P7 billion for the first year following ratification of the BBL, she said.

In the second year, she said, the fund will amount to P10 billion, “to be paid out to the Bangsamoro government over five years at the rate of P2 billion per year.”

Under the draft law, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), will also receive P1 billion “to carry out the requirements of transition” from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) to the Bangsamoro autonomous region.

The central government will also provide an annual block grant to the Bangsamoro, its share in the national internal revenue of the government.

 “What is going on now, what are being emphasized, are the supposed bad things of the BBL without the bigger picture of what’s good about it. This is my lament to the mass media, they only discuss the demerits without emphasizing the merits,” Ferrer said.

“The discussions are inaccurate or total falsehood, but the text of the BBL is clear.”

Senen Bacani, a member of the GPGH peace panel said “the misinformation hurt the BBL discussions.”

“There’s really no basis for all this wrong information,” he said.

http://www.luwaran.com/index.php/welcome/item/769-gph-peace-panel-chair-clarifies-two-misconceptions-in-bbl-provisions

Foreign terrorist, 72 BIFF rebels killed in AFP offensive

From the Manila Bulletin (Mar 10): Foreign terrorist, 72 BIFF rebels killed in AFP offensive

Government security forces have killed 72 Moro rebels and one suspected foreign terrorist in the on-going offensive against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Maguindanao and North Cotabato, the military said Monday.

Lt. Col. Harold M. Cabunoc, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs office (PAO) chief, said the series of clashes with the BIFF have also left four soldiers dead. That includes a young officer identified as 1Lt. Rommel Auman, Executive Officer 6th Scout Ranger Company, who died in the fierce fighting with at least 100 bandits.

Cabunoc said the military also suffered 29 men wounded in action (WIA).

“The AFP has dealt a big blow on the BIFF in the series of law enforcement operations that it carried out in North Cotabato and Maguindanao,” said Cabunoc during a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo.

He said that as of 8 a.m. Monday, the military has logged 73 fatalities, 33 wounded, and four captured on the side of the BIFF.

Of the 73 fatalities on the enemy side, Cabunoc described one as “foreign-looking” who is believed to be among the five international terrorists being coddled by the group of Mohammad Ali Tambako, a former BIFF commander. Tambako had recently formed a new armed group, the Justice for Islamic Movement (JIM).

AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala said in a television interview that one of the recovered bodies bear similarities to one of the United States’ most wanted Islamic militants. But he refused to name the suspect.

Cabunoc, on the other hand, also said that another slain BIFF gunman who was reported to be wearing a SAF shirt was a cousin of BIFF founder Ameril Umbra Kato. The suspect is believed to be getting instructions from Kato based on the messages in his mobile phone which was recovered by the soldiers.

The current law enforcement operations were triggered by the atrocities committed by the brigand group on civilian communities in North Cotabato in early February. At least 25,000 people have fled the fighting that ensued between the MILF and the BIFF in Pikit, North Cotabato.

The 6th Infantry Division has launched simultaneous calibrated law enforcement actions in different localities in Maguindanao February 25. The operations aimed to hunt down the Filipino bomb expert Basit Usman, Tambako and five Jemaah Islamiyah members.

Cabunoc said the AFP has extended the conduct of operations for another three days due to the continued presence and resistance of the BIFF bandits.

In one of the clashes during the weekend, the military said one of those killed was a suspected foreign terrorist whose body was retrieved by the Marines Battalion Landing Team 6 (MBLT6) last Sunday.

Lt. Col. Willie Manalang, commander of the MBLT, described the suspect as about 5’8 in height and fair skinned.

“He does not look Asian. He could be one of the foreign terrorists who were coddled by the BIFF,” he said.

http://www.mb.com.ph/foreign-terrorist-72-biff-rebels-killed-in-afp-offensive/