Wednesday, July 19, 2017
By MARCHEL P. ESPINAMERLINDA A. PEDROSA

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte’s proposal to extend martial law in Mindanao until the end of the year has garnered mixed reactions from local officials in Negros Occidental.

Former governor Rafael Coscolluela, a Capitol consultant, said the President has a bad track record in setting timelines.

“Better for him (Duterte) to just say that martial law will stay for as long as absolutely necessary, based on recommendations of the proper authorities and approval of Congress,” he said.

Coscolluela noted that the national government "needs to be more credible," adding that "broken promises and unmet targets are not very reassuring.”

He said the administration also needs to be more transparent and up front with the information they give the public.

“Unfortunately, even Congress has so far failed to perform their duty to determine the validity of the basis for the declaration of martial law,” he said.

Coscolluela said he is hoping for the early return to normalcy in Marawi City, and Lanao del Sur’s neighboring provinces.

Third District Representative Alfredo Benitez did not comment on the move, saying he wants to hear the report during the special session on July 22 first.

Duterte had asked the Congress to hold a special session on Saturday, July 22, to discuss the proposed extension of martial law.

The validity of martial law in Mindanao will end on July 22.

Duterte placed Mindanao under the military rule after Maute terror group attacked Marawi City in an attempt to establish a caliphate for Islamic State fighters in Southeast Asia.

Abang-Lingkod partylist Representative Stephen Paduano said the decision will depend upon the assessment of the lawmakers over the weekend.

“If the situation still warrants, besides, we will still get the basis during the joint session and the sentiment of the congressmen from Mindanao,” he said.

For his part, Bacolod City Representative Greg Gasataya said he is in favor of extending the military rule in Mindanao.

He said the Department of National Defense will make a presentation and a recommendation on the possible extension during the special session.

“For me, I’m in favor of the extension of the martial law considering the situation in Marawi. For the past two months, we did not receive reports of abuses by the military forces,” Gasataya said.

5-month extension ‘enough’

Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief-of-Staff General Eduardo Año said Duterte’s proposed five-month extension of martial law in Mindanao is enough to end the insurgency in war-torn Marawi.

He said the martial rule in Mindanao needs to be extended, stressing the Marawi crisis is still "far from over."

Año noted that to date, around 60 to 70 members of the Maute terror group are still holed up in Marawi City in Lanao del Sur, while the presence of more or less 800 "Islamic State-inspired terrorists" are reported in other areas in Mindanao.

“We can notice that it’s still far from over. We have to address it once and for all,” Año told reporters Tuesday.

Duterte sought Tuesday morning, July 18, the extension of martial law and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao until December 31.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the proposed extension aims to allow the security troops to proceed with their offensives against the terrorists in Marawi City and prevent spillover of the armed conflict.

Año said martial rule in the conflict-torn region might not reach until December if the government forces are able to “significantly degrade the capability of this terrorist group who staged this rebellion.”

“The President made it clear that once everything is normalized, we will even recommend for the early termination of martial law. It’s purely work. We do not have any interests, except to bring back normalcy and defeat all the threats, particularly the terrorists, the Maute, Isis group who staged this rebellion,” he said.

“If there’s already a ground for the lifting, we will make our recommendation,” he added.

Mindanao has been under martial law since May 23 when members of the Maute terror group occupied Marawi City to defend Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon, who has been on the US's list of most-wanted terrorists worldwide. (with reports from SunStar Philippines)