Justice remains elusive as SAF 44 remembered

MANILA, Philippines — Justice remains elusive for the 44 police commandos killed by Muslim rebels after hours of holding their ground in a cornfield in the remote town of Mamasapano, Maguindanao exactly four years ago yesterday.

This was according to the families and loved ones of the fallen policemen who lamented that none among those responsible for their death had been punished.

The 44 Special Action Force commandos were killed in a gun battle with militants – mostly members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) – as they were leaving the site of the raid in Mamasapano after killing Malaysian bomb-maker Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan, whose Filipino cohort Basit Usman was killed in another operation months later.

The gunfight also left 18 militants and five civilians dead.

The MILF is poised to lead an expanded autonomous region in Mindanao with the initial tabulation of results of the plebiscite on the Bangsamoro Organic Law showing more votes in favor of greater Bangsamoro autonomy.

Yesterday, memorial rites were held to honor the dead – including mass and laying of wreath at the headquarters of the 5th SAF Battalion in Zamboanga City.

PNP chief Director General Oscar Albayalde led memorial rites at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig.

Erica Pabalinas, widow of the late police chief inspector Ryan Pabalinas, said justice is still elusive years after the death of her husband and his comrades in SAF. Pabalinas nevertheless said they were thankful that there is now a National Day of Remembrance for the fallen commandos.

Rohermina Asjali, mother of PO3 Jedz-in Asjali, said it pains her a lot seeing no justice on the horizon.

“Even the former president was not jailed because they have money,” Rohermina said, referring to former president Benigno Aquino III.

Days after what later came to be known as “Mamasapano Massacre,” the Department of Justice filed murder charges against more than 80 commanders and fighters of the MILF.

In 2017, the Office of the Ombudsman filed with the Sandiganbayan one count each of graft and usurpation of official functions against Aquino in connection with the tragic outcome of the raid, originally an operation to capture or neutralize Marwan.

The ombudsman held Aquino liable for reportedly allowing then suspended PNP chief Alan Purisima to supervise the operation, called Oplan Exodus.

Purisima was then under preventive suspension by the ombudsman in connection with an alleged anomalous courier service deal between the PNP and a private firm for the delivery of firearms licenses in 2011.

But the former chief executive blamed the heavy loss of police lives on then SAF chief Getulio Napeñas, specifically for his failure to get reinforcement from the military. Purisima and Napeñas are also facing charges with the Sandiganbayan.

‘Resolve immediately’

At Malacañang, presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo called on the ombudsman to resolve immediately the cases filed against former president Aquino and some of his officials for lapses in the implementation of Oplan Exodus.

“We urge the Office of the Ombudsman to resolve with dispatch the case filed against those who recklessly placed them in mortal peril. The nation demands justice for them as well as the prosecution of those responsible for the botched police operation,” Panelo said yesterday.

Malacañang paid tribute to the fallen commandos.

“We pay homage to the bravery and heroism of the 44 uniformed personnel of the Special Action Force known as the Fallen SAF 44. They offered and gave their lives for the country and the people,” Panelo said.

He also vowed to look into some complaints that family members of the fallen SAF commandos have not yet received their full benefits.

Panelo said “we continue to pray for the eternal repose of the souls of these gallant heroes who were recipients posthumously of the PNP Medal of Valor (Medalya ng Kagitingan)” and “share in the grief of their bereaved families.”

He stressed the Duterte administration would never allow a repeat of such tragedy made possible by incompetence.

“Never again will we allow a recurrence of such tragic event. Those in authority must learn from the mistakes of the past, otherwise those valorous men in uniform would have died in vain,” he said.

Some relatives of the fallen policemen as well as officers and members of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) and Citizens Crime Watch, meanwhile, held a memorial outside the Supreme Court and sought an update on their petition for certiorari to review the usurpation and graft charges filed against Aquino and the dismissal of the other charges against him such as reckless imprudence.

“The SAF 44 is against the natural course of things because it should be the children who should bury their parents and it is painful for the parents that they were the ones who buried their children,” VACC lawyer Ferdinand Topacio said.

“I believe that the justices know what they should do. This is just a gentle reminder that today, Jan. 25, it has been four years and there is still no justice. If you could just look at their case… The quest for justice is always impressed with a certain sense of urgency,” he added.

The SC in February 2018 issued a temporary restraining order to stop the arraignment of Aquino before the Sandiganbayan on charges of graft and usurpation.

In Zamboanga City, Police Regional Office 9 director Chief Supt. Emmanuel Luis Licup and 5th SAB commander Supt. Romil Avenido said SAF members should emulate the dedication and courage displayed by their fallen comrades.

SAF commander Chief Supt. Amando Empiso said his men are in “high morale” as they are getting more support from the Duterte administration.

He said five more battalions would be added to the current nine as part of the unit’s expansion. – With Christina Mendez, Edith Regalado, Romina Cabrera, Evelyn Macairan