Moro youth group doubts ambush, seeks probe

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—A youth group called on Wednesday  for an investigation into an explosion that wounded nine government forces, including members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG), saying it believed that what happened was an “accidental” firing rather than an attack.

Drieza Lininding, vice chair of the group Bangsamoro National Movement for Peace  and Development based in Lanao del Sur, said he asked residents around the area where the incident purportedly happened, but everyone denied that an ambush took place.

“We went house to house to investigate, but the residents denie(d) that an ambush took place,” Lininding said in a post on Facebook.

No fragments, damaged car

“I asked them (residents) if they (saw) any fragment or damaged car, they  all say none and no one was wounded. Some suspect(ed) that the pictures of  wounded soldiers allegedly in that ambush being airlifted, came from Butig, where the fighting between (the) AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and Maute Group (Dawlah Islamiyah) (has been) taking place,” Lininding said.

He said that residents had told him a convoy of military trucks passed by, with one soldier apparently firing accidentally his M203 grenade launcher.

“The convoy following them thought they were being ambushed so they fired upon an abandoned area with trees. Some of the civilian houses were hit (but) luckily no civilian was hurt,” he said.

Civilian accounts

Lininding said that based on civilian accounts, no military truck was damaged and that none of those in the convoy was injured.

“We urge a thorough investigation of this incident,” Lininding said, as he called on the police, independent peace monitors and the Red Cross to also interfered because civilian homes were hit in the gunfire.

Part of a larger scenario

“Our fear is that this is part of a larger scenario to declare martial law in the Lanao area,” he said.  “Some reports, I was told, are insinuating that the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) was behind the attack.”

He also asked the member of the state-own broadcasting firm to show the pictures and actual footage of the scene to determine whether a real ambush occurred.

“Let’s get the facts straight and stop manipulating information,” he said. “I hope the embedded media, who have seen the alleged ambush, will show the pictures.”

The incident occurred just a day before President Duterte was to visit the area. It also came as troops were engaged in  clashes with the Maute group, blamed for a September blast that left 15 dead in Davao City.—JIGGER JERUSALEM, RICHEL UMEL AND ALLAN NAWAL