MANILA, Philippines—Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno has no plans of taking back his previous statement pointing at the Moro Islamic Liberation Front as behind the kidnapping of Irish priest, Fr. Michael Sinnott, even if Malacañang has been singing a different tune.

His spokesperson, Brian Yamsuan, said on Thursday that Puno's statements were backed by solid evidence gathered by a joint investigating team from the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines on the circumstances of Sinnott's abduction.

"He is standing by what he said because he has solid information from the ground," Yamsuan told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone on Thursday.

From the evidence gathered, the DILG was also poised to file cases against Sinnott's kidnappers but "until such time that the priest has been freed," he said.

In a briefing on Tuesday, Puno said the MILF, led by Commander Al Alshree, had a hand in the kidnapping of the 79-year-old missionary priest on October 11, shutting the door on the MILF's offer to help rescue Sinnott.

Reversing Puno's announcement, Malacañang said on Wednesday it remained open to the MILF offer to help the government in rescuing Sinnott.

But despite differing convictions, Puno carried on with his duty and remained hands on with the case, flying to Zamboanga del Sur, on Thursday, to preside over a meeting with the crisis management committee, said Yamsuan.

He was to stay there until Friday for another talk with the committee, he added.

This only showed that Puno, who has been overseeing the PNP, was not going soft on kidnappers. "He is just protecting the government and its international reputation," he said.

But he added, "Whatever President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will order, he will oblige."