Trillanes links Arroyo official to coup plot

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Monday linked Norberto Gonzales (inset), national security adviser and defense secretary of the Arroyo administration, to an alleged plot to unseat President Aquino amid public anger over a disastrous police mission to arrest two terror suspects. FILE PHOTOS

MANILA, Philippines–Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Monday linked Norberto Gonzales, national security adviser and defense secretary of the Arroyo administration, to an alleged plot to unseat President Aquino amid public anger over a disastrous police mission to arrest two terror suspects.

Trillanes, an erstwhile Navy officer who led two failed attempts to oust Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo when she was the President, answered in the affirmative when asked in a brief interview whether Gonzales played a role in the destabilization plot against the Aquino administration.

Earlier, he and Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago disclosed that they had received information about a coup plot, especially with the public anger over the botched police operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao province, that led to the deaths of 44 police commandos of the elite Special Action Force.

“The role of Norberto Gonzales is to create trouble in the Philippines,” Trillanes told reporters when asked about Gonzales’ supposed participation in the plot.

Gonzales could not be contacted for comment as of press time.

‘Sociopath’

Trillanes described the former member of the Arroyo Cabinet as a “sociopath” who would pursue whatever idea he got into his head.

The senator noted that nobody seemed to be following Gonzales’ lead, though someone was funding his activities.

“He has no influence whatsoever, but he’s trying to project as if he has one. Remember, briefly, he was defense secretary but no one had listened,” Trillanes added.

Trillanes, an Aquino ally, said there was no need to be alarmed over the plot against the administration, but people must not be complacent either.

“Having experienced this, for them to be able to get one disgruntled soldier with a valid grievance can become a very bad situation for this administration,” he said.

Best deterrent

The senator said the best deterrent for the plan was to expose the recruiters to alert the Armed Forces of the Philippines. When he was part of the plot to unseat then President Arroyo, he and his coconspirators had lain low when their plans came out in the media, he recalled.

Santiago, in a Senate hearing last week, said she had received intelligence data that several parties she described as “leaders of certain alphabet soup acronyms who are familiar with the public” had met to discuss how to stage a coup d’etat.

Also discussed was who to install as the new President, Santiago said.

A “rich Filipino” was behind the plot, according to her.

Lessons learned

But soldiers, particularly the enlisted personnel, who took part in previous attempts to overthrow the government, have learned their lessons and would no longer participate in a destabilization plot if there is one, according to Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc.

Cabunoc, chief of the AFP public affairs office, made this observation amid rumors of a brewing destabilization plot by soldiers and policemen upset over the government’s mishandling of the SAF operation in Maguindanao.

He reiterated that the AFP had not monitored any coup plot within the military organization or the reported involvement of some former local government officials.

“If there are officials who are trying to persuade us [to join] coup attempts, we will not follow them. They are not part of our chain of command,” Cabunoc said.

“In the first place, we have no valid reasons to remove our loyalty from the President of the Republic of the Philippines and Commander in Chief. We have remained loyal to the Constitution and we will remain focused on our mandated tasks,” he said.

Careers destroyed

Cabunoc said the military career of many soldiers who had taken part in previous destabilization efforts were destroyed by people who lured them into joining coup attempts.

He said the enlisted personnel were either discharged from the service or demoted to the lowest ranks, affecting their families.

Cabunoc said soldiers today were fully aware of the risks of military adventurism and the punishments provided in the Articles of War and in the law.

Earlier, the commanding general of the Philippine Army debunked rumors of a coup allegedly fueled by discontent over the Mamasapano incident.

Loyal to administration

Maj. Gen. Hernando Iriberri, who was a guest during the 45th anniversary of the 4th Infantry Division in Cagayan de Oro City on Feb. 5, said the military remained loyal to the Aquino administration.

Ramon Montaño, former chief of the Philippine Constabulary and the Integrated National Police, has said the discontent and unrest could fuel destabilization.

But Iriberri categorically trashed the idea, saying there was no such thing as a coup plot or even attempt to stage one.

“The military is fully behind the Aquino [administration] and the people,” he told reporters.

Iriberri said that despite the Mamasapano incident, which put Malacañang and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) at the receiving end of the blame game, the military was fully committed to peace and the peace process with the MILF.

“We put primacy in peace and we have invested so much in peace,” he said.

“We should just wait for the findings of the investigation of the board of inquiry on the Mamasapano incident,” Iriberri said.–With a report from Bobby Lagsa, Inquirer Mindanao

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