Council backs PNP, AFP ops to end violence in Surigao
BUTUAN CITY – The Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) is supporting special operations being conducted by government security forces to put an end to violence and disband lawless elements in conflict-affected areas in Surigao del Sur.
In a statement sent thru the Philippine Information Agency (PIA-13) to various news agencies, the RPOC also urged a stop to the harsh and unjustified judgment being passed on military forces and encouraged critics to instead support the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP),
The PNP and AFP have recently been tapped for the Joint Task Force Tejero to capture the killers of three farming school officials in Lianga, Surigao del Sur and make sure that violence is eliminated in the province with the dismantling of all private armed groups.
This developed as the Police Regional Office 13 (PRO-13) said the Lianga Municipal Police Station (MPS) already filed charges of multiple murder, arson, grave coercions, robbery, and grave threats against siblings Bobby and Loloy Tejero, Garito Layno, and 20 John Does at the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in Lianga town of that same province.
Joint Task Force Tejero is headed by Surigao del Sur Police Provincial Office Director Sr. Supt. Narciso Verdadero through the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Committee (JPSCC) to ensure continuity and inter-operability of operating units within Caraga region.
“In the interest of sustaining peace and development in our communities, the Army forces working in our region will be extending a great deal of cooperation, even exasperating all efforts to ultimately achieve the task force’s mission and mandates. Fault-finding on the uniformed men in the government serving for the protection of every citizen is something we cannot allow,” said Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand M. Amante, Jr., chairperson of the RPOC, in a statement.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Infantry (Diamond) Division (4th ID), in coordination with the government of Surigao del Sur to include NCIP and OPAPP, is now preparing a unity dialogue among and between concerned stakeholders to thresh out issues arising from the incident in Lianga, Surigao del Sur.
The venue will be in Butuan so that leaders of lumads or indigenous peoples’ communities from Caraga and even from Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental can attend, said Regional Army spokesman Capt. Joe Patrick A. Martinez.
He said the unity dialogue will then be followed by a “Tampuda” (ritual) to be participated in by concerned stakeholders mentioned above.
He said the undertaking is expected to empower the Lumads along accepted traditional and cultural practices and it is further envisioned that the truth shall come out from the talks of the concerned parties themselves.
“This is to clear accusations leveled against the AFP as coddlers of the suspects in the killing in Lianga, Surigao del Sur on September 1, 2015 and prevent unjust labeling of the AFP as Human Rights violator,” the regional Army spokesman added. (Mike U. Crismundo)