When Mar Roxas uttered “Muslim na mananakop” to describe insurgents who besieged Zamboanga City in 2013, it didn’t sound right in the ears of some debate watchers.
Debate watchers took to social media on Sunday night to air their dismay over the Liberal Party standard-bearer’s choice of words when he was referring to Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) during the second leg of PiliPinas Debates 2016 in Cebu City.
READ: Binay, Duterte, Poe, Roxas square off in delay-marred Cebu debate
Roxas was answering independent candidate Grace Poe’s question on whether President Benigno Aquino III’s personal appearance in a crisis supposedly handled by Roxas, who was then Department of Interior and Local Government secretary, was an indication that the President did not trust him.
Roxas answered: “Nabanggit po ninyo na ito sa Zamboanga. Tama po kayo nandoon ako. Tatlong linggo po ako doon kasama ni Secretary Volts Gazmin. Hindi po kami umuwi. Siniguro natin.”
Saying the government ensured that there was minimal civilian causalities, the former DILG chief went on enumerating the number of fatalities from civilian, government and the rebels.
“Ilan ba ang hostages doon? 200 mahigit. Ilan ang namatay? Isa. Ilan ang mga namatay na sundalo? 10. Ilan ang mga namatay na pulis? Walo,” he narrated.
“’Yan po ang mga casualty sa pagsisiguro na minimal ang mga civilian casualties doon sa pagsakop ng Zamboanga ng mga Muslim na mananakop,” he added.
In a Facebook post, Zed Dituculan “detested” the “Muslim na mananakop” remark of the Daang Matuwid bet.
“Will I hear our LP Muslim friends rebuke Mar on his spontaneous statement, ‘mga Muslim na mananakop’? I hope Mar will apologize for such a wrong statement. Or are you (Mar Roxas) simply pointing that Muslims in Mindanao are not Filipinos?”
Ditucalan, who identified himself as a Muslim lawyer, said the remark made him “proud of the gallantry of my race” but pointed out that Roxas’ diction showed the presidential bet’s view of Filipino Muslims.
“But the context of the statement, Mar. The context. You just painted how you perceive the Muslims in the south. I am afraid that you might be the greatest enemy of the Muslim Filipinos if you get elected President. You just “Trumped” my admiration,” he said.
“Pinagtanggol pa naman kita nong batikusin ka maging Datu ng Lanao. Now, I am retracting my defense to you. Too bad. I just remember that you were among the killers of the Memorandum of Agreement-Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD). Now, I can’t help but wonder if you were sad or happy about the demise of the BBL,” he added.
In January this year, Roxas was enthroned as datu of Lanao del Sur sultanate, an honorary title that could help him secure votes in Mindanao.
READ: Mar Roxas proclaimed datu by Lanao sultanate
Another Facebook user, Ahmad Javier noted: “Lumalabas sa bibig ang laman ng puso.” His post was shared 542 times, garnering more than a thousand reactions from like to angry.
Iyyah Sinarimbo wanted to teach Roxas of the “untold history of Mindanao.”
“Clearly, you know nothing about the true meaning of being a Muslim and the true essence of Islam for you to easily generalize the people part of the community,” Sinarimbo wrote on Facebook.
“We are not terrorists. We are the victims and I fear will remain the victims as long as people like you desire to lead our country. If you truly want to right what was wrong, include the Jabidah Massacre in our history books. Teach the younger generation about how one by one, during Marcos’ reign, the sultanates all over Mindanao started to disappear because the datus were killed,” she said.
“Do not erase us from history.”
Some debate watchers also took to Twitter to share their views on Roxas’ remark.
“I’m making a big fuss about Mar’s statement “Muslim na mananakop.” It shows how he perceived Muslims. #PiliPinasDebates2016,” @attysamina wrote in a tweet.
“Muslim na mananakop” nice choice of words Mar. You really know how to let people hate you. #PiliPinasDebates2016,” tweeted Len (@len_21)
“Mga Muslim na mananakop”. Fallacy of Converse Accident! Enough with the stereotyping sa mga Muslims already! #PiliPinasDebates2016″ tweeted Elmar Jobguia Jr. (@elmartensitic)
Below are more reactions to “Muslim na mananakop:”
https://storify.com/anthesguerra/reaction-to-mar-roxas-muslim-na-mananakop-remark#publicize