WHAT WENT BEFORE: Aquino and the Mamasapano mission

In January this year, former President Benigno Aquino III denied having a direct participation in the botched operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, by the Special Action Force (SAF) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) that led to the deaths of 44 police commandos on Jan. 25, 2015.

Aquino asked the Office of the Ombudsman to dismiss the three complaints filed against him by the relatives of the slain SAF commandos, saying he could not be directly faulted for the deaths of the troopers because of his limited involvement in the operation.

He said he was not directly involved in the planning and execution of “Oplan: Exodus,” as these duties fell under the “sole discretion” of the ground commanders. Two al Qaida-linked terror suspects were the targets of the operation. One was eventually killed and the other had escaped.

Aquino said the insubordination of SAF commander Director Getulio Napeñas led to the clash with Moro rebels.

“If I had a fault as President at the time, it would be this: It never occurred to me that Napeñas would lie to the President of the Philippines,” Aquino said.

He said he instructed Napeñas to coordinate with the military for armor, artillery, air and troop support in the event the mission was discovered and Moro rebels responded in force.

But Napeñas informed the military about the mission only when the raid was underway, instead of “days before” to give the military time to prepare, he said.

Two years after the botched operation, the Ombudsman filed in the Sandiganbayan charges of graft and usurpation of official functions against then PNP Director General Alan Purisima and Napeñas for bypassing the PNP chain of command. —INQUIRER RESEARCH

Source: Inquirer Archives