PNP on full alert for Maute in Metro Manila

Security forces have been placed on full alert a few days ahead of the feast of the Black Nazarene in Manila on the possibility of a terror attack.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismael Sueno stressed the threat is real, citing reports from the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) of possible retaliatory attacks from the Maute group and Ansarul Khilafa, whose founding leader Mohammad Jaafar Maguid was killed during an encounter with police in Sarangani early yesterday.

Sueno revealed the intelligence community has received information that some members of the Maute group are in Metro Manila. He did not elaborate.

He said there was also a possible threat from the Abu Sayyaf, which has been the subject of intensified operations of the military in southern Philippines.

“The threat will come from the Maute group and the Abu Sayyaf, mainly the Maute because they are connected with the ISIS,” Sueno said, referring to the Islamic State group by one of its acronyms.

Sueno said the Philippine National Police (PNP) is now on full alert.

“There are reports, that’s why we are not leaving (anything to chance). We have our ( security) preparations, we are not leaving anything to chance at all… As long as we know that there is a threat we consider it big already. That’s why our preparations are also big,” he said.

Sueno said full security preparations would extend up to the Miss Universe pageant on Jan. 30.

Asked to assess the level of the threats, Sueno said the information came from the country’s intelligence community, coupled with information provided by their counterparts abroad.

Sueno also warned of potential violent repercussions from the death of Maguid, better known as Commander Tokboy.

“They ( Ansarul Khilafa) might retaliate so we have to double our preparations,” Sueno said, citing the upcoming feast of Black Nazarene on Monday.

Khilafa has carried out deadly attacks on civilians in Mindanao in the effort to win support from IS.

“If they are related to ISIS, we are sure their funding is coming from the outside,” Sueno told a briefing held at Malacañang.

Sueno stressed the threat and influence of the Islamic State to homegrown terror groups in the country.

He said the government has assumed that the local terror groups are receiving funding from supporters abroad but did not elaborate.

“We have intelligence reports but we do not have specific (money) trail,” he added.

Sueno said President Duterte had been briefed on the changes in the national threat board.

He added Duterte would discuss the concerns with PNP officials and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in a command conference today in Malacañang.

Despite the threats, Sueno said the government is not recommending the cancelation of the feast of the Black Nazarene.

“I don’t think that the government will advise the cancellation of this traditional practice… we will just try our best to keep our people safe. This is why we have the PNP, the military and the armed groups in our government to really help contain or maintain peace and order to keep our people safe,” he said.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), for its part, increased its monitoring of passengers coming from the south to Manila as part of the government’s security measures for the feast of Black Nazarene.

Coast Guard spokesman Col. Armand Balilo said the PCG is using sea marshals to board ferries to profile its passengers and to look out for individuals identified or linked with terrorist groups.

“We intensified our intelligence operation to ensure that we would have everything covered, and that they would not be able to slip past our security measures,” Balilo said.

Balilo said they are expecting the threat to come from the south.

“They would most likely try to travel to Manila via ship,” he said.

Balilo said the PCG would be deploying rubber boats to the Pasig River to check and secure the bridges where the Black Nazarene procession would pass.

Quiapo Church rector Monsignor Hernando Coronel assured the public that they are coordinating closely with government security authorities and are given regular updates on security.

“This is a partnership so we rely on the authorities. We are regularly talking (with the other agencies) but not about the speculation,” Coronel said.

When asked if he was worried about the possible security threats that could disrupt the religious procession on Monday, Coronel replied: “We pray. That is the only thing we can do. They ( other partner agencies) have their jobs to do. We have to do our respective processes.” – With Evelyn Macairan