Marcos forms task force vs Negros violence

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos has formed a task force that aims to suppress violence and maintain peace and order in the Negros provinces, a month after the gun attack that left Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo and eight other people dead.

The task force will coordinate and rationalize the efforts of state agencies and instrumentalities to ensure a “whole-of-government approach” in preventing, investigating, prosecuting and punishing violence in Negros, according to Administrative Order No. 6, signed by Marcos on April 3.

“The task force shall formulate and implement measures to prevent further violence and ensure peace and order in Negros Island,” the President said in the order.

Marcos cited the shooting incident last March 4, in which armed men gunned down Degamo at his residence in Pamplona town, killed eight other civilians and injured 17 others.

“Similar violent incidents have occurred in the past and at present, threats to safety and security cut across different sectors and affect various stakeholders in Negros Island,” the AO read.

“There is a need to create a special task force to prevent the spread and escalation of violence elsewhere in the Philippines, and to preserve peace and order in Negros Island, with due regard to the fundamental civil and political rights of the people,” it added.

Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos will chair the task force known as the “Special Task Force Degamo.”

The justice and defense secretaries will serve as vice chairpersons while the chiefs of the police and military and the director of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will act as task force commanders.

The chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) public information office will serve as the task force’s spokesman.

The task force will intensify the campaign against private armed groups and loose firearms and submit to the President, through the Office of the Executive Secretary, reports on the state of peace and order on Negros Island, its initiatives and recommendations.

PMSTF Degamo may tap the assistance of other agencies to achieve its objectives as the order also enjoins local governments to render assistance to it.

The task force will be composed of four national task groups on intelligence, law enforcement operations, investigation and legal and strategic communications and community relations.

The national task group on intelligence will involve the intelligence community of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), PNP and NBI.

The law enforcement operations national task group will use the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Center mechanism composed of the AFP, PNP, NBI and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) from the national down to regional levels.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government and PNP were directed to establish an informer rewards program for the apprehension of suspects in the killing, subject to existing laws, rules and regulations.

The investigation and legal national task group will be composed of the Special Investigation Task Group Degamo of the PNP and its Police Regional Office 7, NBI, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, Bureau of Immigration, Land Transportation Office, Anti-Money Laundering Council, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, PCG, Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Cyber Crime Investigation and Coordinating Center of Department of Information and Communications Technology.

The AFP, PNP, NBI and PCG will also be involved in the strategic communications and community relations national task group.

The Special Task Force Degamo will have a secretariat to be composed of personnel from its member agencies. The secretariat, to be led by the PNP deputy chief for operations, will provide administrative, operational and technical assistance to the task force.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has been tasked to extend emergency relief assistance to the families of the victims of the shooting incident while the Department of Health was directed to provide psychological rehabilitation to affected persons.

The task force is expected to come up with the operational guidelines of the AO within 20 days.

Marcos also instructed the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas to coordinate with the task force to enlist the “full support” of all stakeholders.

Charge Miranda

On the Degamo case, the Department of Justice (DOJ) will charge Marvin Miranda, one of the alleged orchestrators of the March 4 attack, with nine counts of murder, 13 counts of frustrated murder and four counts of attempted murder.

The DOJ, in a statement released yesterday, said prosecutors handling the Degamo case found that the ex-army reservist who served as a long-time bodyguard of Negros Oriental 3rd District Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. was a key conspirator in the crime.

“The state prosecutors found that Miranda conspired in the commission of the crimes and recommended his indictment, together with accused (Rogelio) Antipolo, (Winrich) Isturis, (Joven) Javier, (Romel) Pattaguan, (Eulogio Jr.) E. Gonyon and (John Louir) JL. Gonyon, who were previously charged in court,” the DOJ said.

“In effect, the state prosecutors would be amending the informations previously filed in court to include Miranda as one of the accused,” it added.

Miranda was arrested last week in Antique province during what authorities believe was an attempt to flee.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Miranda was a “fellow mastermind” of the attack, with Teves as the alleged “main or highest mastermind.”

The justice chief identified Miranda as the recruiter of the soldiers for the hit squad, while Teves allegedly financed and directed the whole thing.

“Given the recent arrest of Marvin Miranda, Justice Secretary Remulla is confident that the case is nearing its conclusion… The Department will be releasing further updates on any developments on the Degamo slay in the coming days,” the DOJ said.

DOJ spokesman Mico Clavano said prosecutors would soon be filing charges against Teves due to strong evidence linking him to Degamo’s killing.

“Very soon. Although, the exact date I can’t tell yet, because the priority here is the quality of the case,” Clavano said in an interview aired over dzBB radio. Clavano said the facts gathered by the DOJ are “compact and complete.”

“It’s just a matter of making the presentation of facts, evidence and statements of witnesses better… we can actually see a trail at the top and that’s all we want to see so that when we file the case finally, it’s clear what the motives are, it’s clear who really ordered it and when,” he said.

At present, the NBI is holding Miranda and the 11 other suspects, all former soldiers, who were part of the assault team that carried out the deadly attack locally referred to as the Pamplona massacre.

All have expressed their willingness to cooperate in the investigation to point to the other masterminds of the killing.

Earlier, Remulla said about three more masterminds are still in the country and presently being tracked by the NBI. — Neil Jayson Servallos