PNP: Security measures enough to thwart terrorist attacks

The Philippine National Police (PNP) assured the diplomatic community yesterday that the local police can thwart any terrorist attack anywhere in the country.

PNP chief Director General Hermogenes Ebdane stressed that police security measures are more than sufficient to frustrate terrorists in carrying out their threats.

"Our security measures are in place and we believe that are more than sufficient in the present situation," Ebdane said.

Chief Superintendent Jaime Caringal, PNP intelligence chief, added his foreign counterparts have been assured of security despite the closure of the embassies of Australia and Canada, as well as the European Union (EU) delegation offices.

"They were given relative information that the country is safe, and that the Philippine police have never lowered its guards since the terror threats in Metro Manila," he said.

Caringal, however, claimed the Australians and Canadians had never shared those "specific threats" that prompted them to close down their missions.

Newly installed Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Dionisio Santiago also averred the AFP intelligence never received any intelligence report from the Australian embassy that it would be attacked.

National Security Adviser Roilo Golez described the Australian intelligence report of an imminent terrorist attack against their embassy as "rubbish."

He also claimed the travel advisory from Canberra advising its nationals not to travel to the Philippines was "grossly incorrect" and misrepresented the presence of civil disorder in the archipelago.

"There is none. It’s very obvious to everyone (that) if they committed a gievous error like this, how could they possibly have good intel work on something as complicated as terrorist threat," Golez said.

"That piece of information (of an imminent attack against Australia’s mission) to me is rubbish."

Australia on Thursday indefinitely shut down its embassy in Makati City, citing a "specific and credible" threat by Islamic militants. The Canadian embassy also closed its doors, citing similar concerns.

But Golez said the move had hurt the country’s image and dismissed it as a "knee-jerk reaction that was not a product of good intelligence analysis."

"So it’s really saddening. This is a dagger in the back and right now we are bleeding because of this very unfriendly act on the part of Australia," he said, noting Ottawa closed its embassy because Australia shared its "grossly incorrect" report.

"We are a victim of an Australian kangaroo court," Golez added.

Australian Ambassador Ruth Pearce sought to defuse tensions Friday, saying she would relay Manila’s concerns to Canberra, even as she argued the foreign office here was told of the decision to close beforehand.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople said the alleged threat came from the regional militant Islamic group Jemaah Islamiya, which has been blamed for the October 12 bombings on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali that killed many Australians.

The information , however, was not shared with local authorities, Ople said.

Opposition Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. and former senator Francisco Tatad said the closure of the embassies was an indication that the Philippine government has lost its credibility in terms of addressing the terrorists’ threats on foreign tourists in the country.

Pimentel told the weekly Kapihan sa Sulo Hotel media forum that Ople should open himself to the ambassadors on the real situation the country is facing right now.

He said foreign embassies are supposedly the country’s windows to the international community reflecting "our own world."

"The closure of the embassies is a serious matter that this government should take serious consideration. We are in effect shut out of view to which these embassies belongs," Pimentel said. "It is a matter of very serious concern for this government."

He said the closure of the embassies were to be followed by other countries, the Philippines will find itself "in very serious trouble."

Pimentel stressed the government should exert more effort against suspected terrorist groups to convince the international community that it will be safe to operate their diplomatic missions in the country.

Tatad, on his part, said the closure of the embassies has a far larger impact than the latest scandal involving government officials and members of her Cabinet.

On the other hand, PNP director for operations Chief Superintendent Vidal Querol said the security plan has been in place even before Australia and Canada closed down their missions last week.

Querol described the closure of the embassies was just an offshoot of the "generic threat."

Ebdane and Santiago also stressed the need for the Philippine government to assuage the fear of the Australians.

Santiago, on his part, said the Australians and the Canadians have overreacted to the terrorist threats.

"We cannot blame them, but it is an overreaction on their part to close down their embassies in the country," he said.

Both officials, who were attending a ceremony to formally receive the 102 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel surrenderees in Marawi City, said the closure of the two embassies came "not a surprise."

Santiago said the closure of the embassies would only be temporary until the threats against them have been cleared.

PNP Deputy Director General Edgardo Aglipay said the embassies did not entirely shut down their operations.

Aglipay told reporters in Zamboanga City that the two missions have transferred their location and are still providing consular services.

"The closure of the embassies were not prompted by any threats but by location," Aglipay said.

Aglipay said the embassy officials were prompted to look for another location for security reasons.

Former Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) general manager Nixon Kua said the closure of embassies in the country would mean a decrease in tourism next year.

"The income of tourism in our country is threatened because tourists may not come anymore to the country next year because of this terrorist threats," he said.

Kua said the presence of the embassies represents the tourists which would visit the Philippines. – With Jose Rodel Clapano, Roel Pareño, Bong Fabe, AFP