Probers facing blank wall on bus bombing

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines – Authorities are still facing a blank wall on last Tuesday’s bomb attack on a passenger bus that left at least 10 people dead and several wounded in Bukidnon.

This developed as Malacañang yesterday vowed to hunt down those responsible for the attack.

“First, certainly we condemn the violent act that resulted in the loss of lives… the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is now supporting the PNP (Philippine National Police) in finding the perpetrators of this act,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a press briefing.

Authorities are still not certain which group should be held responsible.

There were also conflicting figures on the number of fatalities. Authorities earlier placed the number at 11 but revised it to 10 yesterday.

Valte said reports reaching Malacañang showed nine people were killed and more than 15 injured.

Valte extended sympathies to the victims’ families and said they would be assisting them in any way they could.

“But certainly, we are set on finding who is responsible. To my knowledge, there are no groups yet – at least as far as I was informed – that have claimed responsibility; but, certainly, the full investigation is already underway,” she said.

Asked if the incident should prompt much stricter security during the visit of Pope Francis next month, Valte said that even without such incident, preparations for the visit of his holiness would take into consideration all possible situations.

Valte said she was not at liberty to discuss the developments on the bombing incident when asked if it was an act of terrorism or extortion.

Security forces have been ordered to monitor the Abu Sayyaf and the separatist Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).

Col. Andrelino Colina, commander of the anti-terror Joint Task Group Zamboanga (JTGZ), said intelligence reports reveal an Abu Sayyaf bombing plot.

“The intelligence community has not intercepted fresh bombing plot but the standing plan of the Abu Sayyaf group is to conduct bombing,” Colina said.

Colina said the bombing could be a retaliatory attack from the Abu Sayyaf, also aimed to divert the ongoing military operations against them in Basilan and Sulu.

Colina also said the attack could be also a form of extortion.

Military intelligence immediately blamed the BIFF for last Tuesday’s bombing.

“It had the trademark of a bombing carried out by the BIFF in the past. The improvised explosive device used was an 81 mm mortar and the way it was exploded is consistent with the pattern of the BIFF,” a military intelligence officer said.

Another military intelligence officer agreed on the bomb “signature” used in the attack.

“The explosion points to the group of a certain Dawtin Gendang of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters together with new (bomb and demolition training) graduates as a test mission,” a military source said.

With the involvement of the BIFF in the deadly blast, investigators are now exploring possibilities that Khalifa Islamiya Mindanao (KIM), an emerging group of young Islamic militants with links to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) rebels, could be involved.

KIM bomber Usman Hapids, whose 12 pupils underwent bomb and demolition training under direct supervision of Arab-looking terrorists in 2012, was tagged in the attack of a gathering of medical practitioners at Limketkai Mall, Cagayan de Oro City in July last year.

The bombing left six dead and 46 injured.

Hapids was also tagged as the main suspect in the bombing attack in General Santos City last September where eight people were wounded.

Others in the intelligence community said a group of extortionists could be behind the bombing attack.

The management of the ill-fated bus, Rural Transit Mindanao, Inc. (RTMI), however, denied having received any extortion demand from any group before the incident.

RTMI though promised to help pay for the medical bills of the passengers injured in Tuesday’s bombing.

It was the second bus of RTMI that was attacked by suspected extortionists in just four weeks. Four passengers were injured in a blast last Nov. 6. – Aurea Calica, Jaime Laude, Edith Regalado, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Roel Pareño, Gerry Lee-Gorit, Ben Serrano