Statement of the President on the hostage-taking incident at the Quirino Grandstand
With the rest of the Filipino people, I wish to offer our deepest condolences to the families of the victims whose lives were lost in the hostage situation at the Quirino Grandstand. The Secretary of Foreign Affairs has conveyed our deep feelings of sorrow to the Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China and the people of Hong Kong through Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang. I have tasked Secretaries Soliman and Lim to provide everything necessary for the recovery and return home of the survivors. I have directed the fullest cooperation with the Hong Kong authorities on the part of our officials.
From the onset of this incident, the hostage-taker seemed to not be belligerent, as shown by the release of hostages. These were encouraging signs.
We were going to wait him out. The idea was to let the ground commanders who are the experts in this field handle the operation with minimal interference from people who are less expert.
But the situation deteriorated rapidly when, during the course of the negotiations, he was given the letter of the Ombudsman in which she promised to personally review his case. As he was reading the contents of the letter, while talking to an unknown individual on the phone, he became increasingly agitated.
The presence of his brother also added to the tension.
At this point, he threatened to kill a hostage. The police decided to remove the brother from the scene. As the negotiators were departing, the negotiators were shot at.
Media coverage of his brother being taken into custody further agitated the hostage-taker.
Shots were fired. They seemed to be warning shots, as there was no audible indication of tumult or chaos to show that the hostages were in immediate danger.
Nonetheless, the negotiators tried to reestablish contact with the hostage-taker but they were unsuccessful as the cellphone of the hostage-taker was continuously busy. He also refused to answer the throw-phone provided for him by the authorities.
The escape of the driver, combined with his reports that the hostages were being harmed, forced the assault to happen. When the vehicle began to move, and with reports that he had hand grenades, a decision was made to immobilize the vehicle as it would have made the situation even more dangerous.
As we know, the incident tragically ended in the deaths of eight innocent civilians.
We expect more of the facts to come to light and I have ordered Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to thoroughly lead this review. (OP)
Malacañang to conduct study of OP intelligence fund
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) will conduct a thorough study on whether or not the Office of the President (OP) will return to the practice of having no intelligence funds.
“We will make a proper review of the intelligence funds. And after the review, then we will be able to make more appropriate decisions on the matter,” Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma said in a press briefing at Malacanang on Monday amid calls from Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile for the OP to give up its intelligence funds .
Coloma stressed that it is the principle of President Benigno S. Aquino III not to tolerate any wasteful use of government funds.
He said the present administration will have to review the current use of these funds and will decide whether or not its use by the OP is still valid.
Coloma explained that this practice was inherited from previous administrations when the use of these funds were made highly confidential.
The OP never had an allocation for an intelligence fund until former President Joseph Estrada formed the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF). In 2001, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo abolished the (OPS)
Palace to honor court's order to cancel passports of Lacson
Malacanang says it will honor the order of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 18 to cancel the diplomatic and regular passports of fugitive Senator Panfilo Lacson to bring him back to the country.
“What we are saying is that we are honoring these legal processes, we are honoring the order of the court. And so, if there are certain departments like the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Justice that are following this order then we stand by their act to follow the court order,” Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma said during a press briefing at Malacanang on Monday.
The Department of Foreign Affairs canceled the diplomatic and regular passports of Lacson on Saturday. The Senator fled the country on Jan. 5 following an arrest order made by the Manila RTC Branch 18.
Coloma likewise said that Malacanang has no authority to decide on the proposal to cancel the salary of Lacson because the matter is now in the hands of the legislative department.
“That matter is included in the principle of the separation of power between the executive, judiciary and legislative,” Coloma said.
At the same time, Coloma advised the son of Senator Lacson to direct his appeal for the cancellation of the warrant of arrest for his father to the Manila RTC and not to President Benigno S. Aquino III because the executive branch has nothing to do with it.
Senator Lacson has been the subject of manhunt operations after the Manila RTC issued an arrest warrant for the lawmaker in connection with his involvement in the November 2000 murder of public relations man Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito.
Coloma assured the public that law enforcement agencies are doing its best to trace the whereabouts of Senator Lacson and to bring him to court immediately upon his arrest. (OPS)
President Aquino swears in more government officials
President Benigno S. Aquino III personally administered the oaths of office to 36 new government officials in simple ceremonies held at Malacañang Palace’s Rizal Hall on Monday.
They are:
Herminio B. Coloma, Jr., Head, Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO); Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan, Chairperson, Commission on Higher Education; Daniel L. Lacson, Jr., Chairman, Government Service Insurance System; Karina Constantino David, Member, GSIS Board of Trustees;
Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr., president and CEO, Social Security System; Juan B. Santos, Chairman, SSS; Diane Pardo Aguilar, Commissioner, SSS; Francisco D. del Rosario, Jr., president and CEO, Development Bank of the Philippines; Jose A. Nunez, Chairman, DBP; Antonio Jose U. Periquet, Member, DBP and Juan Kevin G. Belmonte, Member, DBP;
The other officials were:
For the Department of Agrarian Reform: Antonio N. Parungao and Jerry E. Pacturan, Undersecretaries; Maria Theresa I. Martinez, Herminia Fe B. San Juan, and Mary Frances Pesayco Aquino, Assistant Secretaries;
For the Department of Justice: Jacqueline B. Veloria Mejia and Geronimo L. Sy, Assistant Secretaries;
For the Department of Tourism: Maria Victoria V. Jasmin and Domingo Ramon C. Enerio, Assistant Secretaries;
For the PCOO: Elizardo de Layola and Renato M. Marfil, Assistant Secretaries;
Regina Paz L. Lopez, Chairperson, Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission; Peter N. Tiangco, Administrator, National Mapping and Resource Information, Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Felizardo Serapio, Jr., Executive Director, Philippine Center for Transnational Crime;
Ma. Regina B. Martin, Administrator, Sugar Regulatory Administration; Gen. Rex Derequito Piad, Special Envoy for Transnational Crime; Chito Cruz, National Housing Authority; Geraldine Go Bernardo, Executive Director, Philippine Sports Commission; Jose Luis Reyes Gomez, Commissioner, PSC;
Teofilo C. Abejo II, Member, Toll Regulatory Board; Manuel E. Dimaculangan, Member, Board of Directors, Manila Economic and Cultural Office; Jaime C. Laya, Board of Trustees, Cultural Center of the Philippines; Maria Cristina V. Turalba, Board of Trustees, CCP; and Abraham Kahlil B. Mitra, Chairman, Palawan Council for Sustainable Development.
The President also administered the oaths of office to 15 newly-elected mayors comprising the League of Municipalities of the Philippines in the province of Leyte. (OPS)
Malacañang acknowledges ADB's advice for Aquino gov't to expand the middle class
The Aquino Administration will focus its economic development program on building and expanding the country’s middle class.
“The reality is that we have not expanded our middle class considerably. And, this doesn’t compare favorably with the records of our neighboring countries in Asia,” Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma said.
The Asian Development Bank has advised that economic development in the Philippines must aim at expanding the middle class so it can achieve sustainable economic growth.
According to Coloma, it is the government’s thrust to expand opportunities for our people to improve their lives.
He noted that poverty reduction programs for the past years were focused mainly on helping the poor rather than on building a strong middle class.
He stressed that reforming the educational system, creating more high-paying jobs and enhancing healthcare services remain the top three priorities of the Aquino Administration. (OPS)
