P-Noy asked to address Mindanao peace and order

MANILA, Philippines - A Christian-Muslim non-government organization yesterday called on President Aquino to address the root causes of the peace and order problem in Mindanao following the bombing at the Zamboanga City International Airport last Thursday.

“While wang-wang has not killed anyone, the problem of boom-boom and bang-bang is killing and will continue to kill more people in Mindanao,” said Armand Dean Nocum, who has started a literacy advocacy group in Zamboanga City to stop the rise of child-soldiers among terrorists and rebel groups in Mindanao.

Nocum was referring to the efforts of President Aquino to stop government officials and other people from using sirens and blinkers to get ahead in tight traffic congestion.

Nocum said while Aquino has the resolve to go after abusive drivers in Metro Manila, he has yet to make a strong statement and outline a clear policy to address the problems in Mindanao, which includes poverty, high unemployment; unsafe and unattractive environment for investment; high incidents of crime, kidnapping and bombings; and the high number of loose firearms.

“Unless we address the root causes of these problems, there can be no end to the kidnappings and bombings in Mindanao,” he said.