Magtibay, Santiago opt for early retirement

MANILA, Philippines - Metro Manila police commander Director Leocadio Santiago had offered to resign two days after the hostage crisis last Aug. 23.

Santiago
said he told President Aquino that he was willing to leave his post if it could save the government from embarrassment.

Mr. Aquino said he would wait for the outcome of the joint investigation before deciding on his fate, Santiago added.

However, Mr. Aquino told television network executives yesterday that Santiago and Manila police director on leave Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay had offered to avail themselves of early retirement.

Santiago said he was not clinging to his post. Magtibay declined to comment.

“I’m serving at the pleasure of the President, our commander-in-chief,” he said. “If he orders me to vacate my post, I’ll gladly do so.”

Aquino: I won’t fire Robredo, Puno

President Aquino will not dismiss Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and Undersecretary Rico Puno, but he would not not “take the bullet” for them.

Mr. Aquino said he and Robredo have the same principles, only that when he was his ground campaign coordinator and manager, they did not agree on some matters, such as scheduling of sorties.

Mr. Aquino said he asked Robredo to handle the problem on informal settlers, not the police.

“I have somewhat more experience in handling matters with the police, so I took it upon myself to continue that function until such time that we have addressed the other issues that have to be addressed concerning the promises we made during the campaign,” he said.

Mr. Aquino said he appointed Robredo interior and local government secretary despite their differences because of his qualifications.

Asked about the appointment in an acting capacity, Mr. Aquino reiterated his earlier statement that he still had to see if they could work together, particularly in “nuances of style.”

Mr. Aquino said he still had to discuss things with Robredo before his appointment would be made permanent.

Mr. Aquino said Puno was the point man but they left it to the ground commander, Manila police director Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, to lead the rescue operation
.

“So, Usec Puno, from the afternoon, he brought the liaison officer who was supposed to keep me apprised of all the developments,” he said.

“And through him, I was calling up various other personalities that I had to talk to throughout the day. And also, I had another observer present to hopefully tell me in case there are lapses that I had missed while they’re happening.”

“The recommendations by their higher ups as to positioning, I looked at and I agreed to (them).”

Mr. Aquino said he had some training with regards to hostage situations and setting up a crisis committee.

“I’m sure everybody is aware that as the only son, I took it upon myself to be chief security officer even, to a degree, the informal one during (my mother’s) incumbency as president,” he said.

“Now, Puno gets into the picture primarily because he would know the people who I would need to put in the boxes that have to be filled.”

Mr. Aquino said Robredo was not part of this whole decision making cycle during the hostage crisis, but “more in handling the aftermath.”

“Puno was there doing the functions that I had asked of him, to be a conduit for information, and I also had another officer familiar with hostage rescues who was also in the command post trying to monitor everything as far as possible.”

DILG: Palace has best answer

Malacañang can best answer the “special instruction” given to Puno, according to DILG spokesman Philip Francisco Dy.

Dy said since the Palace issued the special instruction, it is in the best position to explain it.

“Secretary said he’s ready to leave anytime and we think that’s a statement that any secretary should be ready to say at any point because all secretaries serve at the pleasure of the President,” he said, adding that Robredo did not seek the position.

“His perspective is to use every day that he has to maximize it in the best way that he can to serve and to make the people benefit,” he said.

Dy said Robredo will immediately leave the department if President Aquino wants him out.

Aquino: No factions in Cabinet

President Aquino denied yesterday that factions among his Cabinet men led to the government’s bungled response to the Aug. 23 hostage crisis.

Speaking in a panel interview of ABS-CBN 2, GMA-7 and ABC-5, Mr. Aquino said it’s not true that factions exist in the Cabinet.

“I think all of them are reasonable,” he said in Filipino.

Mr. Aquino said several groups helped him during the campaign, but that this has not gotten in the way of how things are done in Malacañang.

The main dilemma of his Communications Group was how to convey that he has been addressing problems, without making it public as it might only have exacerbated the situation if the hostage-taker knew he was taking a direct hand.

Mr. Aquino said he would immediately stop any bickering between Secretaries Sonny Coloma and Ricky Carandang. “I will call their attention to it,” he said.

Mr. Aquino said “refinements” are underway in the manual for crisis management situations.

He added that it’s not his style to always take center stage and appear to be campaigning everyday.

Mr. Aquino said once he no longer trusts his men, he’ll tell them to leave, or he’ll fire them.

“I have my plate full,” he said. “Is it wrong to trust my people? It was a conscious choice. I don’t want to be a back seat driver. It cannot be that I will make the decisions all the time, that means nobody will move when I’m not around.”

Non Alquitran, Philippine Star