OPAPP denies ‘malicious’ claim gov’t bought back SAF weapons from MILF

FIREARMS RETURNED Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. (left) talks with Maj. Gen. Dato Abdul Samad Bin HJ Yaaub, head of the International Monitoring Team, as the AFP official inspects some of the weapons returned on Wednesday by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. JEOFFREY MAITEM/INQUIRER MINDANAO

MANILA, Philippines—The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) denied Saturday the “malicious misinformation” that the government bought back the firearms of 44 slain commandos of the Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police (SAF-PNP) taken by Moro rebels.

“We don’t know where that is coming from. Certainly, there is no truth to that,” OPAPP Executive Director Luisito Montalbo said in a statement, adding that they were “disappointed.”

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Wednesday handed to the government 16 assault rifles taken by its members from police commandos killed in a clash in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on January 25.
But on Friday, a Mindanao-based priest, Fr. Jun Mercado, revealed that the firearms were bought back by the government.

“We find it very disappointing that Fr. Jun, whom we’ve known for a long time and who used to directly engage our Office as a peace advocate, would come out publicly‎ with claims that are unsubstantiated and unverified,” Montalbo said.

Montalbo said that OPAPP’s legal unit has already started looking at various “malicious misinformation” being directed to the agency, which includes Mercado’s claim.

“Definitely, we cannot allow such untruths and violations of our rights to go unchallenged. It is not just the name of the agency that is at stake, but hundreds of its employees who have no way to protect themselves from being maligned in this way,” he said.

Malacañang, meanwhile, said the public should not believe the allegation.

“In a climate like this, let’s be very careful about the information that we believe, especially if it’s unnamed or anonymous,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said Saturday on state-run radio dzRB.

Valte said the fact that the MILF returned the SAF rifles was a manifestation of their “continued interest” for the peace process.

“It’s a manifestation of their continued interest to be our partners in the peace process,” she said.

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