MANILA, Philippines ? Justice Secretary Leila De Lima defended Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo who was made part of the Incident Investigation Review Committee (IIRC) that would look into the bloody hostage-taking incident last August 23.

?We see no conflict of interest on Secretary Robredo sitting as part of the [IIRC] committee,? De Lima said, pointing out that it was Interior and Local Government Secretary Rico Puno who was in-charge of the police.

De Lima said formal proceedings of the committee would begin Friday.

Among those invited were Puno, Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Jesus Versoza, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno, National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO) Chief Leocadio Santiago, former Manila Police District (MPD) chief Rodolfo Magtibay, NCRPO Chief negotiator Orlando Yebra, the woman who drove hostage taker Rolando Mendoza to Fort Santiago.

She said the committee would also meet Thursday to formulate the rules on how the proceedings should take place.

At the same time, De Lima appealed to the concerned officials to cooperate with the investigation.

?We appeal, in the spirit of cooperation. We do not want to get stuck with legal issues because it will delay the proceedings,? De Lima said.