Duterte visits Marawi
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte visited Marawi City Thursday, July 20, after two failed attempts to enter the conflict zone and despite ongoing clashes between government forces and the extremists.
Duterte visited the besieged city exactly four days before the declaration of martial law in Mindanao expires.
The Chief Executive declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23, after Islamic State-affiliated Maute extremist group attacked Marawi City that left hundreds killed and thousands of families displaced.
The death toll in Marawi siege has risen to 565, as of July 19, including the 421 terrorists, 99 government troops, and 45 civilians.
On July 7, the President attempted to visit Marawi City but canceled his plan because of “inclement weather.”
Despite security threats, Duterte insisted that he has to personally see the situation on the ground.
Malacañang earlier said that the Duterte had wanted to visit Marawi City so the affected families and the security troops would feel that “the government is behind them and the President has never left Marawi.”
Meanwhile, Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto urged Malacañang to declassify and make public the intelligence reports it has used as basis in asking Congress to extend the period of martial law in Mindanao until the end of the year.
The senator believed that intelligence information can be shared to the public, for as long as the sensitive
parts are redacted.
Recto said public support for martial law in Mindanao must be “an informed choice, arrived at by them freely through a study of facts, not fake news or alternative facts.”
“If terrorists are knocking on our doors, or if they’re already inside, then transparency is the best policy. Kung hindi ganoon, piyesta ang mga conspiracy theorists. And that uncertainty is what terrorists want,” he said.
“If it will only identify the threats but not the deployment of our forces, then I think the public has the right to know,” Recto said.
“What has been shared to 24 senators and almost 300 congressmen should be shared to the public as well. There’s no harm in such a disclosure, provided it has been purged of its sensitive contents,” Recto said.
Recto admitted that documents and reports presented to them by national security officials “are not so revealing and explosive that they can only be discussed in whispers.”
“These closed-door briefings only add mystery. But content-wise, hindi naman talaga ganoon ka-delikado na you must first take a vow of secrecy before hearing them,” Recto said.
He said a release of “curated information” to the public will educate them if an extended Martial Law in Mindanao is justified or not.
“Let us not embargo all reports. Ibigay natin sa taumbayan ang pwedeng i-share sa kanila. So they can decide for themselves if a prolonged Martial Law is justified. Let us trust their maturity to appreciate the facts. And to spot the fiction,” he said. SunStar Philippines