‘Tit for tat’: Lacson wants ASG kidnapped or killed

Senator-elect Panfilo “Ping” Lacson. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

“Kidnap them back or kill them,” was Senator-elect Panfilo Lacson’s proposed solution to how the incoming administration of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte should deal with the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).

“No better time to address the ASG problem than under President Duterte: kidnap them back or kill them. It may need good very intel work though,” Lacson wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.

He reiterated this statement in a separate text to reporters, saying that the better time to engage the ASG “tit for tat” would be under the Duterte administration.

“Kailangan lang muna ang isang mahusay at matiyagang intelligence work para pinpoint accuracy ika nga sa mga targets (Competent and tedious intelligence work would be needed first to achieve pinpoint accuracy of the targets). There should be no room for mistaken identities for obvious reasons,” Lacson said.

“Sa panig naman ng gobyerno, dahil malalim na infiltration ang kailangang gawin sa pagsagawa ng intelligence work, dapat walang “sunog” para walang mapahamak na operatives,” he added.

(On the side of the government, because deep infiltration is needed in doing intelligence work, there should be no “fire” to spare operatives from danger.)

A lot of technical intelligence, he said, was also needed to complement human intelligence.

“Dapat matapos na ang problema ng paghahasik ng lagim ng ASG. Kung ibabase ko sa mahabang karanasan at mga pronouncements na rin ni Mayor Duterte, sa kanyang administration ko nakikita ang lahat ng elemento para maubos nang tuluyan ang Abu Sayyaf,” the senator added.

(The ASG’s terrorism must end. Based on experience and the pronouncements of Mayor Duterte, I can see all the elements required to decimate the Abu Sayyaf are present during his administration.)

He issued the statements after the ASG’s reported beheading of another Canadian hostage.

READ: Abu Sayyaf kills another Canadian hostage as deadline lapses

In another Twitter post, Lacson also backed a group’s proposal for Congress to grant Duterte emergency powers to address the traffic problem in the country.

The emergency powers, he said, could also be expanded to cover the fight against illegal drugs and Abu Sayyaf.

“Congress should grant the next President emergency powers to solve the traffic problem. Maybe, against illegal drugs and Abu Sayyaf as well,” said Lacson.

The returning senator was reacting to the Management Association of the Philippines’ call has for Duterte to declare a traffic crisis so that he could be given emergency powers to solve the problem. CDG/rga

READ: ‘Give Duterte emergency powers to solve Metro traffic’